Memory, Family, and Demon
by Hidden Guardian
Summary: When Jason's mom dies, he has to drag up memories from his past to prove that he's a better guardian for Melissa than his father. In LA, Nelson has had a drunken one-night-stand. Now he has to tell Manny that he cheated on him, and hope he'll be forgiven
1. Prologue: Jason

_**TITLE:**_ Memory, Family, and Demon

_**AUTHOR:**_ Hidden Guardian

_**SERIES:**_ "Rainbow Boys/High/Road" by Alex Sanchez

_**RATING:**_ M ((hey, they're adults now))

_**SUMMARY:**_ When Jason's mom suddenly dies, Jason has to drag up the painful memories of his abusive past to prove he is a better guardian for Melissa than his father. At home, Kyle has to prove to his parents that he's ready to face the unparalleled responsibility of his own family. Meanwhile, after a night of wild partying in LA, Nelson knows he cheated on Manny; now he has to face telling him.

_**DISCLAIMER:**_ I don't own any of these beautiful boys, no matter how much I want to. That's probably for the best, though. Oh, the things I'd do to Jason….

_**AUTHOR'S NOTES:**_ Be patient for Nelson's parts… I want to do the pattern Jason, Kyle, Nelson, but I also want to do a prologue with Jay, an interlude with Kyle, and Nelson gets the epilogue, so it will be a little bit before Nelson's first chappie.

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PROLOGUE - Jason

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Jason Carrillo wrapped his strong arms tighter around his boyfriend and gently kissed the back of his ear. Kyle laughed and turned over his shoulder to peck him a gentle kiss in return. Ever since Kyle had gotten home from Princeton two weeks ago, Jason had been a little, well… clingy, but that was because he had missed his boyfriend like crazy when they had been apart. Now they had an entire summer together, and the quickies and spontaneous moments that had driven them mad the summer before seemed like Paradise after weeks and weeks without each other.

"Do you have to work tomorrow?" Jason asked huskily, hoping that he might be able to stay late since Kyle's parents had conveniently left them by themselves to go with some friends to see a show.

"Not until the afternoon." Kyle grinned and grabbed his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "But can you wait a minute? I want to finally see the end of this movie."

Jason blinked, confused. "When we got it, you said that you've seen it a dozen times."

"Yeah, with Nelson, and he always talks all the way through, so shh!"

He snorted with laughter and reached for the huge bowl of popcorn, M&Ms, and peanuts they had been devouring as Kyle turned around to stare at the screen. Jason had really thought a movie about a political prisoner in jail in Buenos Aires would be kind of cool, but Molina reminded him way too much of Nelson and the pro-Nazism made him worry about his boyfriend. Still, Kyle seemed to be enjoying it, and he had let Jason watch "Transporter 2" first, so he wasn't going to complain.

He finished off the last of the bowl and picked up their empty Coke glasses. "Want me to go put this stuff in the sink?" he offered.

"Yes, whatever, shh!"

Amused, he walked around the back of the couch, afraid that Kyle would eat him or something if he walked in front of the TV. He dumped the ice down the drain then put the dishes in the sink. They had definitely grown more comfortable in each other's houses in the – what – year and a half? they had been 'friends'. Now, if Jason wanted something out of the fridge, he just took it. And Kyle would flip through his mom's magazines before she even got a chance to read them.

He went back into the living room and slipped behind Kyle, eyebrows rising. Since when had Kyle been on the floor leaning over the coffee-table? Apparently he had almost missed the only action-y part of the whole movie; that prancing queen, Molina, was racing through the streets with gunshots in the background. "What happened?"

"Shh! I'll explain it after." Kyle leaned back against his legs and grabbed his hand; apparently this was the part Nelson had always made him miss.

Jason watched Molina reach the get-away car only to be shot by the chick inside, then a short epilogue that he didn't really get. Only when the credits started rolling did Kyle turn around and smile up at him. "You're a lot better to watch movies with than Nelson," he teased.

Jason leaned down and gave him a peck. "Now what was that you said about waiting until the movie was done?" he purred.

Kyle grinned. "I wonder how late my parents will be out."

"Oh, come on, Kyle," he teased, "don't you think a little risk makes it sexy?" Really, he agreed – it would be mortifying to be caught – but they were mature enough that Kyle's parents shouldn't have a real problem with it… he hoped.

"What's that saying? 'Life's no fun without a little risk'?" Kyle gave him a soft kiss in return that warmed him from the stomach up. "Let's go upstairs."

They walked hand in hand to Kyle's room and Jason closed the door behind them. He frowned at the light bulb; he certainly didn't mind getting to see Kyle's sexy body, but it was way too harsh that late at night.

"I have an idea," Kyle assured, opening his closet and digging through the boxes tucked into the bottom. He came out with a small night-light and plugged it into the far wall. "See how that works."

Jason hit the light switch and immediately approved. The light was just strong enough that they wouldn't be blind, but not bright enough to be glaring. He walked up behind Kyle and slid his arms around his waist, pushing him gently towards the bed.

Kyle went easily, not resisting him at all. When they both fell backwards onto his bed, Kyle leaned up and gave Jason another kiss that made his head go fuzzy.

Their mouths parted and Jason felt Kyle's tongue slip into his mouth, sliding against his. His hands moved to Kyle's sides, sliding under his T-shirt and pushing it up until it was under his arms. He broke the kiss for just long enough to slip Kyle's shirt off and toss it mindlessly across the room, then returned to devouring him, lips first.

He could feel the tugging at his shirt as Kyle fought to get it open. He had to hold back a smirk; buttons seemed to be Kyle's hated arch-enemy in the heat of the moment. But what an ego-trip for him! He slowly pulled back, hearing the first notes of a disapproving whimper from his boyfriend, and helped him get the little buttons undone before tossing his own shirt in the same general direction as Kyle's.

Then they were chest to chest, feeling the warmth of each other's skin as tongues caressed and hands explored. Jason ran his hands over Kyle's strong shoulders and down his arms while his kisses moved down his boyfriend's neck. The skin was so smooth and soft – Kyle's skin finally clearing up completely – and when he sucked gently at his pulse-point, Kyle jerked underneath him.

"Hush," he whispered, brushing his nose against Kyle's ear before reaching down and sliding Kyle's pants and underwear down, shoving them off of the side of the bed.

Kyle's body was fantastic, but it looked especially sexy in the low lighting. The shadows made the small but firm muscles in his torso more pronounced and there wasn't an inch of fat on his entire skinny body. And as for more intimate observations… well, Jason wasn't by any means a size queen, but Kyle certainly wasn't lacking.

"Are you just going to stare, or are you actually going to do something?" Kyle breathed, bringing him back to reality.

He fiddled with his belt – wishing that he would have thought ahead and brought pajamas or something – and finally completed the mess of clothes strewn about the floor as their naked bodies pressed together.

As he kissed all over Kyle's shoulders and chest, he reached with one hand towards the bedside table, digging through pencils, papers, and other random things to the box of condoms Kyle had shoved in the back corner.

The progression from moving against each other to actual penetration had been gradual but more than satisfying. Something about making love with a guy just felt hotter; with Debra, he had never felt like he could completely let himself go because he might have hurt her without meaning to. But Kyle could take every bit of his passion, and could give just as well as he got.

When he finally pulled the wrapper out, Kyle gently took it from his fingers and tore it open. He had never really been bothered by his boyfriend's instance on protection – it wasn't a lack of trust; it was a safety issue – and when Kyle made it part of the fun, it was rather nice.

He absently stroked Kyle's honey-colored hair as the other squirmed awkwardly down the bed, and he groaned when he felt careful fingers touching him. And when they were finally ready, Kyle lay back against the pillows and gave Jason a look of total and complete trust.

Jason pressed forward and Kyle moaned softly, hands clutching at his arms. He kissed him gently, over and over, until he was completely inside of him. He nuzzled Kyle gently then pulled back to see if there was any trace of pain in his features, only to see his boyfriend looking calm and as gorgeous as he ever had.

They moved together, every shift of Jason's hips taking them both higher into the realm of passion, not because Jason dominated or because Kyle relented but because this was familiar, warm, and sweet.

"I love you," Kyle whispered in his ear as Jason leaned down to kiss his shoulder again.

He felt something vague but good spread all over his body every time he heard Kyle say those three soft words and whispered "love you back" in return. He could feel his muscles tightening as he strained towards that perfect finish, but he wanted to hold out for Kyle.

As soon as he felt fingernails dig into his shoulders, he knew Kyle was close. "Go on, Babe," he bit out, "do it."

Kyle moaned and drug his nails down Jason's back as a sudden stickiness coated their stomachs. Jason let himself go fully and came hard before collapsing, spent, with his head pillowed on Kyle's chest.

Long, delicate fingers ran through his dark curly hair as he caught his breath. Under his cheek, Kyle's sweat-soaked chest rose and fell, and he could hear his boyfriend's heart pounding. "That was great," he whispered, sitting up and reaching down to make sure the condom didn't get pulled off as he slid out of Kyle's body.

"Uhn! Y-yeah," Kyle brushed his fingers over Jason's cheek. "I think we need a wet washcloth or something."

Jason grinned and got up to get it since Kyle hated to move in the afterglow. He walked down to the bathroom and tossed the used condom away, tossing some tissues and stuff in there so that it wouldn't be obvious that they had fooled around. He got a washrag from under the sink, got it wet, and washed himself off before bringing it back to Kyle and wiping his chest clean.

"Sleep in here with me?" Kyle asked sweetly as Jason put the cloth on the side-table.

"What if your parents look in?"

"It's almost midnight. They won't look in if they get home this late, and even if they did, that's what blankets are for." He got out his contacts case and got the filmy lenses out (which it always creeped Jason out to watch).

Jason considered it, and then decided that there was no real harm. "Alright." He lay down next to Kyle and pulled the quilt up from the foot of the bed. Kyle snuggled into his chest and Jason wrapped his arms around him, their naked bodies warm against each other.

"What about the nightlight?" Jason asked lazily.

"Leave it. I'm too comfy to make you move."

He raised an eyebrow. "And who said I would be getting it?"

"I did," Kyle answered cheekily before giving him a warm kiss and falling asleep on his shoulder.


	2. Jason

_**DISCLAIMER:**_ I still don't own these sexy boys. Would I like to? Oh yes.

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ I'm totally making up what would happen in this situation. Thank God, I have never been in it and have no idea what reality is, so I'm just going to fake it. Also, I'm making up the names of Kyle and Jason's parents, because the only parent whose name we know is Nelson's mom.

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CHAPTER ONE - Jason

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Jason woke to the sound of frantic banging on Kyle's bedroom door. Kyle sat up, looking dazed, and reached for the glasses on the nightstand. The banging kept up and Jason glanced at the clock on the nightstand. What the hell? It was three-thirty in the morning.

"Please get that," Kyle rasped out sleepily.

Jason reached over the side of the bed and groped blindly for his jeans. He pulled them back on but left them undone as he walked to the door and cracked it open. Kyle's mother was standing there, eyes wide, in her nightgown.

_Shit_. What if she was about to freak out about him and Kyle being in bed together? But surely they hadn't just gotten home and she wouldn't have waited a few hours to kick his ass to the couch.

Then he noticed that she had a phone in her hand.

"Jason, honey, your mom's been in a car accident!"

He grabbed the phone without even thinking about it and leaned against the wall. "Hello? Ma?"

"Are you Jason Carrillo?" a man he didn't know asked from the other end of the line.

"Yes, yes, is my mom okay?" he demanded, sitting down on the end of Kyle's bed. Mrs. Meeks was still standing in the door, looking worried, and Kyle rested a hand on his shoulder, looking at him with big eyes.

"I'm Officer Mackenzie, I was the first one to respond to the scene of the… accident. I'm sorry, son; your mother's car was hit head-on by a drunk driver. She didn't make it."

Jason collapsed against Kyle's shoulder. "No," he whispered, "that's impossible."

"It never gets any easier to tell family members this. Someone has already been by your house to get your little sister, but we haven't told her what happened yet. We need you to come to Mercy Hospital as soon as possible."

He felt like a mummy; everything was being coming to him fuzzy through layers and layers of gauze. "Oh God… yeah, yeah, I'll be there as soon as I can; what do I need to do?"

"Go into the main entrance and have them direct you to the emergency unit, then ask for me at the nurses' station. Do you have any way of getting here?"

"I-I'm not sure," he breathed, trying to think. His head felt stuffy and he couldn't think clearly. He glanced up at Kyle's mom. "Anna, is there any way I could get a ride to the hospital?" he asked, voice coming out weak and raspy.

"Of course," she told him, taking off down the hall.

Kyle grabbed his bicep and looked up at him, but Jason ignored him and brought the phone back to his ear. "Yeah, yeah, I'll be able to get there. Is somebody with Missy?"

"We have one of our female officers sitting with her; please hurry."

"Yeah… I'll be right there." He hung up the phone and stared at it for a minute. How was this possible? There was no way his mom had died in some car wreck. If he pinched himself hard enough, he would wake up and all of this would be some awful nightmare.

"Jason, what's going on?" Kyle insisted softly.

"M-my ma… she was… hit by some _fucking_ drunk driver!" he snarled, hands shaking.

"Oh my God! Is she okay?" he demanded, eyes huge.

Jason clenched his jaw and shook his head. "No. I… shit! I've got to get to the hospital; they already have Missy." He stood up and flipped on the overhead light, wincing as the bright light hit his eyes. He picked up his shirt and pulled it on, fighting furiously with the buttons and with the belt and zipper of his jeans.

"Jason, talk to me," Kyle whispered, getting up and stroking his shoulder, not seeming to care that he was naked.

Jason looked at his boyfriend and wanted to talk to him, but how could he say the words? This wasn't supposed to happen? How could his mom be dead? "I've got to go."

Kyle looked hurt and Jason grabbed him by both arms, giving him a deep kiss. "Don't worry; no matter what happens, I'll come back here if your parents will let me, and I'll hopefully have Missy with me."

"You'd better count on them insisting you come here," Kyle whispered, hugging him tightly before he searched for his own pajama pants.

Jason left him looking and went downstairs where Mr. Meeks was standing at the front door, still in his pajamas and house-shoes, with a jacket on over. "I'm going to drive you; let's go."

He ducked into the living room for his shoes, then they got into the Meeks' car and Kyle's father turned off the radio as they drove quickly through the streets. Jason brought his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, watching the lights rush by. He felt like a little kid again, unable to believe that his parents weren't invincible.

"I'm going to stay with you," Mr. Meeks told him finally, "you shouldn't have to deal with all of this by yourself. And you're coming home with me no matter what happens tonight."

Jason nodded, eyes misting up. Kyle's parents were so great to him whenever he needed them. But he couldn't break down crying – he was going to have to deal with endless conversations with the police and a little sister who would probably be hysterical. He had to be the strong one.

When they got to the hospital, Jason got out and Mr. Meeks told him that he was going to go park, leaving Jason to head inside by himself. He rushed up to a nurse. "How would I get to the emergency unit from here?" he demanded, running a hand through his sleep-mussed hair.

"If you go down the hall to the right, take the first left, it's at the end of that hallway," she told him quickly.

Trusting Mr. Meeks to find the way himself, Jason took off, hating the sterile feel of the place. It was like they purposely made hospitals to suck all the joy out of people.

He pushed open the double doors to the emergency unit and walked up to the desk. "Excuse me, I need to find an Officer Mackenzie."

"Are you Jason?"

He turned around to see a man in a police uniform walk up, looking solemn. "I spoke to you on the phone," he said, extending his hand.

Jason ignored it. "Where's my sister?" he asked, "has anyone told her yet?"

"No; we usually leave things like this to the family, especially when it concerns children. But I need you to come with me first."

He shook his head firmly from side to side. "I want to see Melissa first," he insisted.

Officer Mackenzie frowned but nodded. "Alright, follow me." He led Jason down the hall to an empty patient's room. A policewoman was sitting in one of the chairs and Missy was in one of the beds with a crayon and some computer paper.

"Jay!" she cried, jumping off of the bed and running over, tackling his legs and almost knocking him over, "what's going on? They said something happened to Mom!"

He leaned down and picked the seven-year-old up, letting her skinny arms wrap around his neck. "It's alright," he lied, "I'm here now and I'm going to take care of everything, just wait and see."

"I'm scared!" she said loudly in his ear, squeezing him tighter.

His throat closed up but he nuzzled her soft hair. "Calm down, Missy. Kyle's dad is here and he can stay with you while I take care of things with Ma; is that okay?"

She nodded and he put her down on the ground, kissing her on the top of her hair. Thank God she was okay; what if she had been with his mother? He hugged her again before stepping out of the room with Officer Mackenzie.

"Jason!" Mr. Meeks walked up, keys still in his hand, "what needs to be done?"

The police officer stepped in. "Luckily, Maria Carrillo had her id with her and we were able to identify her, so there will be no need for Jason to go through that."

He turned ashen white at the thought; he had never even considered that he might have to come face-to-face with one of the worst nightmares he could imagine.

"We'll just need him to answer a couple of questions."

"Can you stay with Melissa?" he asked Kyle's dad, "she's really scared right now."

The man nodded. "Of course, but come find me if you need me." He put his hand on Jason's shoulder, offering him support.

"Thanks, Michael." Jason choked up and bit and had to run the back of his hand over his eyes as he followed the officer.

They went into a small private room and Jason collapsed into one of the chairs.

"Do you want something to drink?" Officer Mackenzie offered.

Jason nodded, hoping that it would push down the knot in the back of his throat. A few minutes later, he had a can of soda in his hand and was playing absently with the tab. "What kind of questions did you mean?" he asked quietly.

"Before that, is there anything you want to know?"

He thought about it. "Why was Ma even out in the middle of the night? She would never have left Missy at the house by herself."

"We can't say for sure. At the time of the collision, she was headed away from your house. Your sister was still asleep when we got there to get her, and it took us some time to get her to let us in and come with us. Apparently your parents did a good job making sure that she doesn't trust strangers."

"When, um, when did the actual accident… happen?" he asked, wondering how long it had taken them to get hold of him.

"At two-forty-eight. Your sister told us that you were staying with a friend, but we had to get a phone-book to find the number."

"Yeah, she wouldn't know it," he whispered absently. "Has anyone called my aunt Claire? That's her sister."

"No; we are only able to get in touch with the next of kin. Now, Jason, you're an adult, right?"

He nodded. "Yes, Sir; I'm nineteen."

"And how old is your little sister?"

"Missy's seven," he told the man, afraid that he knew where this was going. Even though he was old enough to be on his own, Melissa was still a minor and the state could take her if they thought it necessary. "But I can look after her."

"I'm sure you can, but since your father still has custody of Melissa-."

"My father?!" he demanded. "He doesn't have any place here!"

Officer Mackenzie raised an eyebrow. "Your parents are still married, aren't they?"

"They are?" He blinked down at the table. _Dammit, I thought Ma was taking care of this!_ "They've been separated for a year-and-a-half, and Ma told me she was going to start the paperwork for the divorce."

"We have no records of that. He is listed as your mother's emergency contact and is also your sister's legal guardian."

"Have you already gotten hold of him?"

"Yes; he should be here any minute."

Jason stood up, ignoring the officer, and headed back towards the room where Melissa was.

"Who the Hell are you?! Get away from my daughter!"

His steps faltered when he heard his dad's bellow, something he thought he had escaped from when he became a man. But he still trembled slightly as he reached for the doorknob and stepped in.

Missy was holding onto Mr. Meeks' pants leg while his dad and Kyle's glared each other down. Kyle's family didn't know what his childhood had been like, but he knew Kyle had hinted that he didn't have the best home-life and that it was mostly his father's fault.

"Jason!" Melissa let go of Mr. Meeks and ran over towards him, jumping up and forcing him to catch her as she clung to him.

His father turned and sneered at him. "What are you doing here, huh, you little bastard?"

"Taking care of _your_ family; one of us has to," he added coldly, holding Missy to his chest. He glanced around to see if the female cop was still there in case it came to another fist-fight between them, but apparently she had left when someone else was there to look after Melissa.

"And who the hell are you?!" he demanded, turning to Kyle's dad.

"I'm Michael Meeks; Jason's friends with my son, Kyle."

"Friends, huh?" he snorted, "More like _boyfriends_; isn't your boy one of those faggots this little princess was always dragging over to the house?"

Jason's vision went red, and he had to hold Melissa closer to keep from going for his father again. Kyle's dad looked furious but kept glancing between father and son who were glaring each other down.

"That's right; unlike me, Kyle's lucky enough to have a _good_ father."

"Don't you mouth off to me, you queer!"

Melissa was squirming in his arms and had her hands clamped over her ears again, the way she always did when he and his father got into it. He was just about to snap back when a tired-looking woman in a business suit with her hair in a tight bun stepped into the room.

She looked around the room, apparently confused at the extra person, before turning to Jason since he had Missy attached to his torso. "I'm Miss Kelley, from social services; I got called in because Melissa Carrillo had been left by herself when your mother had her… accident."

Jason nodded and handed Melissa to Mr. Meeks, not about to let his father get hold of her. "I'm Jason, Missy's older brother," he said, extending his hand for her to shake.

"I'm her father," his old man snapped. "When am I going to be able to take her home?"

"No; I wanna go with Jay!" Melissa protested, reaching for him. "I wanna go to Kyle's house with Jason!"

"Don't you want to go with your dad?" Miss Kelley asked, looking back and forth between Jason and his father.

"Wanna go with Jason!" she repeated, stubbornly. Jason finally felt a bit of rightness in the crazy mixed-up world he had somehow woken up in; ever since Missy was a baby, it had always been them and their mom versus their dad.

"What do you think about that, Mr. Carrillo?" the woman asked his father.

"I refuse to allow it!" he said firmly, startling her.

Well, Jason thought to himself, at least his father wouldn't be winning any brownie points with the social worker. Which would come in handy, because he would be damned if his father got custody of his little sister.

"Michael, can you take Missy out for a second? We need to talk," Jason said, finally.

"That's fine. Melissa, would you like a drink?" She nodded tiredly and Mr. Meeks took her out into the hallway.

"Look, Miss Kelley, no one has told Missy what happened… to our mom," Jason said, slowly. "That Officer Mackenzie said that he was going to leave it to her family to tell her. When Missy finds out, she's going to be hysterical. Wouldn't it be better for her to be where she wants while she's upset?"

That was just logical to him. He would be able to comfort Missy, and Kyle and his family would help. His father would probably tell her to 'stop being a goddamn baby!' That's what he'd said to Jason when his first cat, Tiger, had died, anyway.

"I'm afraid I'm a little confused; are you not all living together?"

His dad scoffed roughly, looking impatient with the whole thing.

"No, ma'am. I was living at home with Ma and Missy; he moved out a year-and-a-half ago." Maybe that would also help her see where Melissa belonged.

"Are you going to be staying at your mother's house immediately?"

He shook his head. "My friend, Kyle, and his parents – that was his dad that took Melissa – will have us staying with them until we all figure out what's going to happen."

"Oh, yes, that's responsible; send my _daughter_ home with two adults she doesn't know and a pair of faggots!" his father hissed.

Jason had to count backwards from ten. "She adores Kyle and it will be easier for four people to look after Missy than just one."

Miss Kelley held her hands up to stop them. "Since Melissa has expressed her will to stay with Jason and he has experienced parents willing to help him, she can go home with her brother for now. I take it that you want custody of your little sister?" she asked Jason.

"Absolutely."

"She's _my_ daughter!"

"Alright. I will have to look into all of the paperwork and see what we have to work with, but I warn you, Jason, that if you want to pursue this, it will be a long, hard battle."

"I'm more than willing to fight it," he said, firmly.

"Then I'll need phone numbers where I can contact both of you once we're ready to proceed. Jason, Melissa may stay with you until that time; however, I expect her to be fully aware of the situation the next time we meet and if for any reason you stop staying with the Meeks? family, she will be taken to your father's by you."

He nodded, closing his eyes tight. "That seems fair."

His father scowled and stormed out of the room, and Jason followed after to make sure that he didn't try to just _take_ Missy. He found Mr. Meeks sitting with Melissa, who was sipping out of a juice bottle.

"Michael… I hate - I _hate -_ having to ask this, but would it be alright if Missy and I stay with your family for a few days?" He quietly explained the situation, keeping his tone even so he wouldn't upset his little sister.

"Of course that would be alright. I'm sure Anna and Kyle would have my ears if I even considered turning the two of you out." He looked up at Jason, eyes serious. "But in the morning, we're all going to have to sit down and have a serious talk."

Jason nodded, knowing that it would be hard but for the best. "I should tell Missy tonight," he said, sadly.

"I'm afraid so."

"I'll tell her in the car, so I can put her right to bed when we get back to your house. It will be better than waking up to it."

"It's your decision," Mr. Meeks said, offering him a small smile. "Let's go."

Jason picked Melissa up and she blinked at him sleepily. "Are we goin' to Kyle's?"

"Yeah. But the two of us – me and you – are going to have to talk on the way to his house. It's about what happened to Ma."


	3. Kyle

_**DISCLAIMER:**_ I'll probably put one of these every chapter even though no one really cares, I'm sure. I'm not Alex Sanchez; I don't own any of the main characters. Minor characters, however, are all mine.

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ I have no idea what the statute of limitations on non-sexual child abuse are in Virginia; apparently the internet doesn't think anything but molestation is 'abuse'. Oh well. I'm sure a nineteen-year-old isn't too old to report it, right? Right….

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CHAPTER TWO - Kyle

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Kyle sat on the living room couch, waiting up for Jason and his father to get back home. He had pulled on his pajamas and come downstairs, fixing himself and his mom cups of hot chocolate while she got a platter of cookies for them.

So far she hadn't said anything about the fact that the two of them had been in bed together when she had come to wake Jason up, or that it was fairly obvious they had been naked. He was relieved; he was already worried enough about whatever had happened to Mrs. Carrillo without his mother starting in on him about his sex life with his boyfriend.

"Did they tell you _anything_ before you brought the phone to Jason?" he asked.

"Just that Mrs. Carrillo was in an accident and that his little sister was already up at the hospital."

Kyle nodded. "Mom… I'm really scared for him. With Jason's dad… well, he only has one real parent. What if she's not going to be alright?"

"I don't know, baby. But we're going to do whatever we can to help."

He gave her a small smile, feeling amazingly close to her. Both of his parents became more and more accepting of Jason's place in his life as the days went by, and it always made him feel warm to know that they approved.

From outside, lights flashed across the window and froze against the far wall before dimming. Kyle got up and opened the front door, turning on the porch light. Jason got out of the car, eyes red and slightly puffy, holding a sobbing Melissa.

Kyle stepped up and ran a hand over Missy's hair, hating to see her upset. "What's going on?" he asked softly.

"Apparently Missy and I are going to be staying here for a few days," Jason answered through a sigh.

His dad walked up behind Jason and put a hand on his shoulder. "Anna and I will make up the couch for Melissa to sleep on."

"I'll help." Kyle rushed upstairs and brought down a folded quilt and two fluffy pillows. He laid the pillows down on one end of the couch and Jason carried Melissa over, laying her down and stroking her hair away from her tear-stained cheeks. Kyle covered her up with the blanket as she reached out and grabbed Jason's shirt.

"Shh," he soothed, "don't worry; I'm not going anywhere."

Kyle loved how good of a brother Jason was to Missy. She fussed a little, but Jason managed to get her to calm down and close her eyes.

"Let's all go to bed," his mom suggested, "it's almost five in the morning. We can talk when we're all rested."

He wondered if that meant Jason could come upstairs with him. Before either of his parents got a chance to protest, he pulled his boyfriend upstairs.

Jason shook his head and sat down on the bed, looking exhausted.

"Talk to me, Jason," Kyle urged, sitting next to him and wrapping his arms around those broad, strong shoulders. Jason's head fell onto his shoulder and Kyle could feel him shaking in his hold.

"My ma's dead," Jason whispered.

Kyle jerked, shocked. When Jason had said an accident, he had expected that she might have some bad cuts and bruises – at worst a broken limb. He had never expected this.

"Oh God, Jason." He squeezed him closer and gently got both of them lying down. "When?"

"I guess a couple of hours ago. I don't know why she was out so late, and Missy didn't tell me anything." Jason buried his face in Kyle's chest, and he gently stroked his wild curls flat. In a weak voice, Jason told him everything that had happened, including the confrontation with his dad.

"I've never been so humiliated," Jason told him. "Not only was he saying shit like that to me but the way he talked to your dad!"

"You know that my parents love you," Kyle assured him, leaning down to kiss behind Jason's ear. He was glad that he had hinted at how crazy Jason's dad was; he knew his dad would never think less of Jason for what Mr. Carrillo had done.

Jason sniffled softly and Kyle brought the blanket over them, tucking him in. "I feel so bad for Missy," Jason confessed, "I don't think she really understands."

"At least the social worker let her come here with you. There is no reason for her to _ever_ go with your dad." Kyle nuzzled Jason gently.

"Like hell I'm letting that bastard get custody of her!" Jason scooted up to lay on the pillows, eyes welling up.

Kyle held him close as tears trickled down his cheeks and realized that he was starting to cry, too. "I'm here," he soothed, "and I promise you we aren't going to let them take Missy away. Things are going to be alright."

Jason started crying in earnest and Kyle gently rubbed his back, sensing that his boyfriend just needed a comforting presence. "I love you," he whispered in his ear, "I'm not going anywhere. Everything's going to be okay." He wished that there was more he could do, but some problems were just more than a college kid could handle.

Finally, Jason's tears started to ebb and Kyle grabbed the blanket, using it to wipe his cheeks dry. "Let's get some sleep," he murmured, holding Jason close. He continued to caress Jason's skin to comfort him as he started to doze off with him.

When Kyle woke up, he could feel Jason's sleepy breaths puffing against his neck and shoulder. He leaned forward and kissed the top of his head then down to his earlobe, knowing that Jason would wake up when he started moving around anyway.

Dark brown eyes opened slowly and Jason moaned, trying to pull the pillow over his head. "I don't want to wake up," Jason confessed, "can't I just sleep for the rest of my life?"

"I forbid it," Kyle joked, gently nudging him. "Come on. My parents and Missy should be awake by now." He reached for the nightstand and grabbed his watch. "Wow, it's one in the afternoon."

He got up and ran a hand through his hair, feeling grimy. Jason stood up behind him and put his arms around his waist. "Thanks for last night," he whispered, "or… well, this morning."

"You can't do everything by yourself, Jay," Kyle told him gently. "You know if you need me I'm going to take care of you."

They went downstairs and Jason wandered over to Melissa who was sitting on the couch. Kyle went into the kitchen and said good morning to his parents even though it was a little late.

"How's Jason doing?" his mom asked softly.

"He's alright, I think. He cried for a while before we fell asleep, but I think it was probably better for him."

"We've been up for a while," his dad said, "why don't both of you get showers and pull on some clean clothes? Jason can borrow one of my shirts." Kyle was glad for that; nothing of his would fit Jason's broad shoulders.

He went back into the living room and smiled when he saw the siblings holding each other. "Jason, my dad said that you can borrow one of his shirts if you want to go upstairs and take a warm shower. If you want, I'll watch Melissa."

Jason nodded and nudged her gently off of his lap. "Missy, stay with Kyle and don't cause trouble, okay?"

She ran up to Kyle, grabbing his pants leg. He picked her up, hiding a groan. Apparently swimmer's muscles weren't enough to make lifting seven-year-olds easy. "How are you feeling, Melissa? Did you sleep well?"

"Uh-huh. I slept really hard."

He went to the rocking chair in the corner of the living room and sat down with her, rocking her back and forth.

"Are Jay and I going to be living here now?" she asked in a small voice that was completely unlike her usual self.

Kyle hesitated to tell her what was really going on. How could he tell her that she might not only be taken away from her brother, but sent to live with her dad? And he knew Mr. Carrillo would never let Jason see her.

"I'm not sure _what's_ going to happen, little girl. For the next few weeks at least, you're both staying here." He wished that he could tell her something more concrete, but in reality the situation wasn't hopeful.

Not only did Jason's father have legal custody over her, but Jason was still in college and only nineteen. The chances of them staying together were very low, even though Jason was a much better guardian in his opinion.

She nodded and leaned against his chest as he rocked her. The resilience of children surprised him sometimes. Despite everything that had happened, she wasn't hysterical or completely desensitized. She was going to be okay, and Kyle thought that kind of innocence was amazing.

Jason came down a few minutes later and the corners of his lips turned up when he saw them. Kyle smiled back and stood up, taking Melissa to her brother and handing her off. She blinked sleepily and nuzzled into Jason's shoulder.

When he got back downstairs, finally clean and more awake, his mom made blueberry pancakes and sent Melissa to the living room with a stack, turning on the cartoons for her, before the adults sat down at the table.

"We're really sorry about what happened," his mom told Jason, patting his leg gently. "We're glad that you and your sister are here."

He nodded. "Thanks. I just… I hate feeling like a burden. I know what that social worker lady said, but I shouldn't be mooching off of my boyfriend's parents."

"It's not like that!" Kyle insisted, turning to his parents to try and get them to agree with him.

"Of course it's not," his dad said. "You know you're welcome here. As for your little sister, well… I wasn't impressed by your father and wouldn't have let her go with him anyway."

Jason bowed his head and Kyle could see his ears turning red with embarrassment.

"Is he always like that?" his dad continued, leaning forward slightly in his chair. His mom's eyes crinkled and he figured that the two of them had talked about what happened just like he and Jason had.

"My dad… my dad's an alcoholic," Jason said finally. Kyle reached out and held his hand while Jason kept forcing the words out. "The two of us have never gotten along. When he was living at home, he would always call me 'stupid' or 'fairy boy'. And if I would talk back…."

Kyle stroked the back of his hand tenderly, trying to give Jason his strength. He knew that it would be hard for him to say it, but he needed to.

"If I would mouth off or if he was having one of his bad nights, he would start smacking me around. He was always yelling at Ma, and he would throw things when he was in one of his moods."

His mom gasped and raised her hand over her mouth, looking horrified. His dad's jaw was clenched tight, like he wanted to go find Jason's father and give him a good punch. Kyle understood; sometimes he had wished someone would.

"He never… like, hit Missy or anything, but I'm not sure how long that would last."

"If your father did things like that, why would the state consider him a fit guardian for her?" his mom asked, "if things like that were happening, social services should have stepped in."

"No one really knew. I would stay at my friend Corey's on the worst nights and never ended up in the hospital or anything."

Kyle flinched and stood up, moving to stand behind Jason and hug him tight. The idea that Jason could have been hurt bad enough that he would have had to go to the hospital still terrified him.

"I was always too embarrassed," Jason continued. "But maybe if I had told someone then they would just let Missy stay with me for good."

"You should go ahead and file a report! Not only will the state keep it on their records, but it could help keep him from getting custody!" his dad insisted.

"But what if they think I'm just making it up because of the custody issue?" Jason argued, putting his head on the table.

"It wouldn't hurt to try," Kyle encouraged. "Surely they have to investigate every report of child abuse they get."

"I don't know. I don't really want to, but I don't know what other choice I have if I want to protect Melissa." Kyle put his hands on Jason's shoulders and felt how tense they were. He gave the muscles and gentle squeeze and Jason moaned softly.

His mom turned to the counter where four plates of pancakes were laying cold and forgotten. "I can warm those back up in no time," she muttered to herself, getting up. Her knee-jerk reaction to seeing him and his boyfriend, he supposed. He was still amazed that no one was saying a word about Jason sleeping in his bed.

"I should go check on Missy," Jason muttered, putting his hands on the table to push back.

"No, you're going to stay here and relax. Have some coffee or something like that. I'll go check on her," Kyle added, heading into the living room.

Melissa was curled up in the couch, knees drawn to her chest and arms wrapped around them, staring blankly at the TV. He sat down next to her and she turned to look at him before snuggling against his side.

Kyle's heart wrenched for her. He had been so focused on Jason only a few minutes ago, but they had all left this little girl in here alone and she probably needed more comfort than her fully-grown brother.

"Everything will be okay, Melissa," he promised, putting an arm around her. She gazed at him with so much trust that he almost felt bad for saying that when they didn't really know what would happen to her. He sent up a silent prayer that he hadn't just lied to her.

What would happen if Jason didn't get custody of her? Kyle didn't know where Mr. Carrillo had been living since he moved out, but he bet it wasn't any place nice. He imagined some filthy, beer-bottle-riddled rat-hole in the bad part of town. He probably drank even more without someone there to curb him. And without Jason there to be his main target, the little girl who had been spared his abuse before might not be able to slip under the radar.

Jason wandered out of the kitchen with a mug of coffee and Melissa squirmed off of the couch, running up to him. "Play?" she asked, sounding hopeful.

"After Kyle and I eat, okay, monkey?"

Kyle smiled as he watched the siblings. Jason should have been Melissa's dad; he had taken his dad's place in raising her. He couldn't help the little thought that fluttered through the back of his mind. _Maybe I could be Melissa's new 'mom'._


	4. Nelson

_**DISCLAIMER:**_ Me still no own these sexy, sexy men-folks. Can I buy a Kyle on eBay?

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ Alright, this is everyone's fair warning. I'm not going to be able to write Nelson that well. Side effect of me being me. All of my friends say I'm waaaaaay to much like Kyle to ever be able to think like Nelson. They're probably right.

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CHAPTER THREE - Nelson

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One of the things Nelson loved most about living in LA was the awesome parties that he and Manny sometimes got invited to! Like this one; Manny had gotten one of his paintings showcased at an amateur art show and the rich guy who had sponsored the whole thing had invited them both to a huge rave. So not what he imagined the artsy type did in their spare time!

He danced wildly, feeling Manny's arms wrap around him from behind as he shook his ass in time to the music. Even though he wasn't twenty-one yet, no one had carded him at the door or the bar and the alcohol felt good rushing through his veins.

"I'm going to get something else to drink!" he called over the pounding bass of the music, "do you want anything?"

Manny leaned forward and nipped his ear. "No, but I'll come with you!"

Nelson grinned. "I'll be alright! I'm a big boy!"

"Don't I know it!" Manny's hand moved down and groped him through his tight black pants.

Laughing, Nelson pulled away and headed for the neon-glowing bar. A huge crowd surrounded it, but Nelson wormed his way through the throng of people and leaned his elbows on the bar, waving down an extremely sexy guy in a tight black T-shirt juggling bottles.

"What can I get you?" the guy shouted to him.

Nelson cocked his head and considered it, then shouted "Dragonfly!" as someone jostled him. He had to wait a few minutes while the five bartenders had to work around each other to get at the alcohol demanded by the hundred-or-more partiers. He tapped his fingers against the bar, moving his head to the beat of the music.

LA was nothing like how he had imagined. He had expected it to be one huge, non-stop party and running into celebrities every time he went to the supermarket. Instead, he had to work a full forty-hours a week at totally boring electronics store because Manny had teasingly but firmly told him that he wasn't about to let Nelson lay around the house all day eating bon-bons and watching soap operas while he was at school, and he hadn't recognized anyone he'd seen yet.

He also missed Kyle. A lot. Even though he called him almost every day, Kyle had occasionally had to blow him off for tests or project or – when he was back home – time with Jason, but they had managed to stay close. Still, calling him constantly wasn't the same as having Kyle there whenever he needed advice or someone to bitch and whine to. He missed Jeremy a ton and even missed Jason sometimes. Other times, he just wanted his mom!

But being with Manny was worth it. They were practically soul-mates. They laughed at all of the same jokes, liked all of the same music, and the sex? Fab-u-lous! Sometimes he could just sit completely still and watch Manny doing something like paint or wash dishes or dig through the cabinets for food and fall in love all over again. He felt as sappy as Kyle sometimes!

The cute guy finally handed him his drink and Nelson waded his way through the crowd again before taking a long drink. Mmm, cranberry! He looked around for Manny and finally saw his fire-engine red sitting at a table with a couple of people, laughing and gesturing wildly.

Nelson danced across the floor, careful not to jostle his drink, and came up behind his boyfriend. "Hey!" he shouted, "Man, you should see the crowd at the bar!"

Manny turned and gave him a smile, reaching meaningfully for Nelson's glass. He rolled his eyes but let Manny take a sip. "Do we know these people?" he asked loudly, gesturing to the other people.

"Yeah! These are guys I go to school with!"

Suddenly Nelson felt self-conscious. This was like meeting Jeremy's friends but worse! "Hi, I'm Nelson!"

"These guys are Jesse, Mark, Skye, and David!" Manny announced, pointing at each in turn. The first three waved back casually, but David gave Nelson a warm smile and motioned towards the chair between him and Manny.

Nelson sat down and took another swallow of his drink.

"So you're Manny's boyfriend?" Mark hollered.

Nelson glowed, knowing that Manny had talked about him to his classmates. "Yep!"

"When does that prison sentence end?" Skye asked and he, Jesse, and Mark cracked up laughing. David was smiling too and looking back and forth between Nelson and Manny. Nelson kind of felt like his worth was being judged and it made him uncomfortable.

"Please, you know you'd kill to be that lucky!" Manny insisted, jabbing a finger onto the table.

The group started talking back and forth about teachers and gossiping about classmates, making Nelson feel like the awkward extra wheel. It was hard seeing Manny talking about a part of his life Nelson really had no clue about.

"So what do you do?" David finally asked him.

"Ugh, so lame! I work at the Radio Shack on West Slauson. It would be cool to work at one of the stores that has Guitar Hero or something out to play with when it's slow, but nothing! And all of the people there treat me like a total freak!"

"You aren't?" Manny teased. Nelson pouted and pinched his thigh.

"You love me anyway!" he announced, squirming in his chair.

"Of course I do, now go get me a Duncan MacLeod."

"I'm not your servant!" Nelson whined but since his Dragonfly was empty he decided to go ahead and get Manny's drink when he went to the bar.

"I'll go with you," David said, picking up his own empty glass. They waded through the crowd of writhing, twisting bodies, being shoved against each other several times. Nelson laughed as David was shoved against him, almost knocking them both into a pair of blonde chicks grinding like strippers.

"I totally love the parties out here!" Nelson shouted to him. "Back on the east coast, the only parties I went to had parents lurking around upstairs!"

"Definitely different than an LA party, huh?" They made it to the bar and David waved down a different bartender. "A Blue Motherfucker and…."

"Another Dragonfly and a Duncan MacLeod!"

"Alright, but it'll be a minute!" the guy called back.

Nelson rocked out to the music for a minute before turning to David. "What's a Blue Motherfucker? I've never heard of one of those, but it sounds totally crazy!"

David grinned. "Yeah, they just made their way out here from Florida! One of those crazy club drinks. It's amazing! You'll have to take a sip out of mine!" He leaned closer and Nelson got to see that his eyes were the fucking darkest green he'd ever seen, like huge emeralds. "So you and Manny have been together a year?"

"A little less than that! Some friends and I came out here for the opening of that school – you know, The Harry Hay School – and Manny helped show us around. It was like love at first sight or something!"

"Aw, that's pretty sweet! Is Manny your first boyfriend?"

"Nah, second! But I'm still friends with the first guy; he's totally cool too!" He bounced in his seat for a few seconds. "So you guys were all joking, but who all's gay or straight or whatever?"

"Mark and Skye are bona-fide dick-lovers. Jesse's straight-but-loving, if you know what I mean – he wouldn't do it, but he isn't about to whip out a crow bar. I'm one of those 'if it moves and is cute' guys. It gets me way more action."

"That's cool! My best friend's guy is bi but they've practically been married for at least a year so Jason doesn't get to sniff around." The guy finally brought over their drinks and Nelson stared at the blue liquid in David's glass. Then the bartender put a clear syringe next to the glass.

David picked it up and stuck the end in the glass, getting some of it in the tube. "Ready to try it? Open up; I'm gonna shoot this straight back into your throat."

Nelson was unsure about this – was that thing even clean? – but David seemed pretty cool and the Blue Motherfucker didn't look half-bad. So he opened his mouth wide and tipped his head back.

David slipped the syringe into his mouth and pushed on the plunger, sending alcohol straight down Nelson's throat. Nelson coughed roughly as it rushed along the back of his throat and gave him a good kick in the stomach. "Holy shit!" he complained, "that's strong!"

David laughed at him and shot a syringe-full down his own throat. "But it's good, right?"

"Yeah, really good." Nelson opened his mouth and David gave him some more. "To heck with the Dragonfly; I'm getting my own one of those!" He downed his refilled drink quickly and ordered a Blue Motherfucker for himself.

They made their way back across the dance floor and Manny looked up. "Was beginning to think you'd been abducted by a raver or something!" he said, taking his drink out of Nelson's hand.

Nelson giggled wildly; for some reason that thought was hilarious. "I tried some of the drink David was having and it was really really good so I got my own!" he announced.

Mark grinned. "Sounds like someone's already drank too much, eh Manny?"

"Ah, Nelson's a party animal! He'll be alright, won't you?"

"Damn right!" Nelson announced, "I'm gonna go dance!" He took another shot from his glass then shook his ass back onto the floor. He suddenly felt completely relaxed and didn't even care when some random guy's crotch was thrusting into his backside as he moved to the tribal rhythm of the club music.

He moved from partner to partner as the songs changed until he found himself pressed chest-to-chest with David. "What are you doing?"

"They're all talking so I asked Manny if it was alright! He said he didn't care!"

Nelson thought that sounded wrong for some reason, but he that was probably just the alcohol talking. Whatever was in a Blue Motherfucker, it was strong! "Alright, sounds cool!" He moved against David, their hips pressing together as the red and white lights flashed over the floor.

"I'm so drunk!" Nelson announced through giggles, "I should totally not try new drinks until I know what they'll do to my head!"

David laughed along with him and Nelson thought to himself that David had the sexiest laugh he'd ever heard. It took him a few minutes to realize that they were moving as they danced, making their way past writhing pairs and bouncing groups. "Where are we going?"

"Somewhere it's less crowded; it's really hot up here!"

"But I wanna dance some more!" Nelson argued too loudly, drawing the attention of the people around them.

"Nah, let's sit down."

"Why aren't we going back to the table then?"

"Because I want to go somewhere the two of us can talk." David led him off the dance floor and to a door that had a green 'Exit' sign over it. Going with him was a bad idea, but Nelson couldn't quite remember why; besides, Manny knew he was with David.

They went into an alleyway and David hopped up on an upside-down trashcan, seeming amused. "Bet this isn't what you expected out of a party hosted by a guy who runs an art gallery, huh?"

"You LA-ers really know how to party, I'll definitely agree to that! Back home I had to pay hobos and stuff if I wanted anything to drink. I remember this one time it was so crazy, I'd managed to get a bottle of rum and shared it with my friends, but one of them is such a goody-goody that he poured the whole bottle out the next morning. I think it might be because I was hitting on his boyfriend, but Jason's really cute." He was rambling, but he didn't care. David had said he wanted to talk.

"I've lived out here since I was a kid. Mom thought she could make it as an actress and Dad was going to direct but both of them work regular nine-to-fives just like everyone else."

"My mom had to work her ass off 'cause Dad took off when I was little. He still paid child support and stuff but he never even came around or anything."

When David's hand went to his leg, he accepted it as a comforting gesture.

"So what are you going to school for?" Nelson asked, "I know Manny's doing art and I've got this friend back home named Jeremy who just finished his two years at community college for psychology. I know Kyle's doing math and God only knows what Jason's doing – besides Kyle – but I'm sure he's got something in the works. So how about you?"

David chuckled. "Pre-med. I'm hoping to go to Biola year after next."

"That's cool! I took a year off from all that school stuff and I know everybody wants me to go back but I really really hate learning. I wish I could get a decent job without! But I'm **not** becoming a lifer at Radio Shack!"

Suddenly, David's lips were on his and Nelson felt an unfamiliar tongue taking up space in his mouth. He let out a muffled sound of protest and pushed on David's chest, trying to get him off. "Stop! You know I'm Manny's boyfriend."

"Manny doesn't have to know. Come on, Nelson. I think you're really cute; don't you think I'm good looking?"

"No!" Nelson lied because aside from the sexy green eyes David also had really soft looking dark-brown hair and broad shoulders that he kind of liked. Still, he shouldn't have even been looking!

"Nelson! I know you want me and I want you, too. It's not like we're starting a relationship or something; it's just sex. Plus it's only just one time."

"This is a totally bad idea; I'm so drunk right now."

But David started kissing him again and Nelson started to feel light-headed as he was crowded back against the brick wall of the alley. Then David gripped Nelson's shoulders and turned him around, forcing him to put his arms against the wall or risk getting scratched up by the rough texture.

He felt David's hands at his belt and might have muttered "stop" but he didn't put a whole lot of force behind it. Unlike marijuana, alcohol didn't make Nelson crazy horny but he still felt pretty muddy-brained.

When his naked butt was exposed to the air, he struggled a bit. "No way! Come on, this is so nuts and I'm sure as hell not doing it bare with a guy I've never even met before tonight!"

"Like I would take you without protection." Then David was inside of him.

Even though Nelson wasn't one-hundred-percent sure he had consented to this, there was no denying that it felt really good! There was something so scandalous about going at it in an alley. Nelson had always wanted to try a few public places – a dressing room stall and kinky things like that – but he had always wanted to do those things with Manny!

He let out a little grunt every time David thrust inside of him, shifting him forward and making his palms scrape on the wall. He had to brace his legs so he wouldn't fall right over. He and Manny had only gone at it vertical once, and that had been in the shower. The floor had been so slippery that Nelson had almost knocked them both over!

He couldn't lie and say that being taken by David didn't feel good. For all that he was plastered he could still move with the hard thrusts into him and when David moved a hand to jerk him in time with his movements it was amazing.

Nelson let out a small cry as he came – too early – against the bricks. His knees almost gave out but David didn't stop until his thrusts got animalistic and he grunted his own finish. He pulled out of Nelson and helped him sit down.

"That was so wrong," Nelson whispered, "we absolutely shouldn't have done that! I'm so drunk and when Manny finds out he's totally going to kill us both."

"Who says Manny has to know? So long as you two don't go at it the second you're alone and neither of us tells him, how would he find out?" David seemed totally casual as he took off the used condom and tossed it into the dumpster across the street.

"I can't hide something like this from Manny!" Nelson insisted, "That's totally wrong!"

"That's your choice. But I'll lie like a cheap dirty rug if you tell him it was with me." David shrugged and walked back into the club.

Nelson curled up into a little ball and started shaking, groping himself frantically as he searched for his phone. His brain was so scrambled from the alcohol and what he had just done that he could barely remember the numbers to dial to reach Kyle's house.

Even then, he thought he might have the wrong number when Jason answered.

"Please, I've really really really gotta talk to Kyle!" Nelson babbled before Jason even completed the word "hello".

"Nelson? What the Hell's the matter with you; you sound plastered."

"I am, now put Kyle on the phone, damn it!"

"Alright, alright! Chill, dude." Nelson nervously played with his fingers until Kyle came on the other end of the line. "Nelson? What's wrong?"

"Tell me I'm not a bad person!" he wailed. "Tell me that I'm a good person that just does a lot of stupid things!"

He heard Kyle laugh nervously. "Of course you're not a bad person, Nelson, you just don't think. What kind of trouble did you get yourself into this time?"

"I'm so totally drunk! You know that I wouldn't do anything like that sober!"

"Anything like what Nelson?" Kyle demanded, "Come on, you're scaring me!"

"I can't say! God, I feel like the worst person alive right now!" Nelson wailed into the phone. Why had he thought calling Kyle would be a good idea? Kyle always managed to make him feel _worse_ about the stupid things he did! If he had any brains in his head, he would have kept talking to Jason; last summer he had ended up cheating on Kyle at a club and while the situation wasn't the same, it was similar.

"Nelson?"

He glanced up and saw Manny standing in the doorway of the club.

"What are you doing out here? Ugh, this place is filthy! Come on back inside." Manny laughed a bit. "David said you seemed totally out of it and were stumbling this way, so I came to get you."

Nelson paled and turned back to the phone. "Okay Kyle, love you, gotta go, bye!" He hung up before Kyle could protest and shoved his phone away.

"East coast friends, eh?" Manny teased, "I hope you told them I say 'hi'. Well, wait, it's nearly eleven p.m. there right now, so I hope you **didn't**." He laughed. "Come on back inside. It's going to start getting cold out here."

Nelson nodded and obediently followed Manny back inside, feeling like such scum. Not only had he probably woken up everyone in Kyle's house – why was Jason there anyway? – but he had also done the unforgivable, the most horrible thing he could have possibly done, and with Manny's friend!

Should he tell him? It would be beyond skeezy not to tell Manny what he'd done! That was the most horrible thing ever! But if he did tell Manny, Manny might break up with him and totally hate him! If he was going to do that, he might as well rip Nelson's heart out and do the Macarena on it. Plus, David would deny it and then Nelson would seem like a drunken nutcase.

He sat at the table, avoiding David's gaze, and retreated in on himself with what was left of his drink.


	5. Jason II

_**DISCLAIMER:**_ I didn't find any Kyles on eBay, so I guess I don't get to own these sexy beasties.

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ I prefer dialogue-driven stories, mostly because I don't write action well. So there won't be as much introspective as there is in Alex's brilliant novels. That's just a style issue that is an unfortunate side-effect of this being fanfiction.

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CHAPTER FOUR – Jason

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"I know he's your best friend, and I definitely like him a lot better than I used to, but he's still a nutcase," Jason commented with a huge yawn. Even though everyone in the Meeks household, including the two visitors, had slept late, they had also been up for a good chunk of the night and talked about things that had given Jason a huge headache all afternoon. He just wanted to go to bed and had been changing into a pair of pajama pants Mr. Meeks had loaned him when the phone rang.

Kyle was sitting on the bed in his own jammies, frowning at the receiver. "I should call him back," Kyle said, bringing the phone close so that he could do just that.

Jason put a hand on his wrist to stop him. "He was slurring like crazy and talking faster than usual. He was probably just drunk dialing."

"But he sounded really upset," Kyle argued even though he put the phone down and lay down next to him.

"Then let Manny take care of him. Come on, Kyle; I really need you right now." Jason knew he sounded whiny but Nelson could take care of himself every now and then! Kyle was not his therapist.

Kyle smiled gently and nuzzled himself into Jason's chest. Sighing with relief, Jason wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and held him close. "I'm glad your parents are being so cool with all of this," he whispered. "I figured I'd be banished to a layer of newspapers under the kitchen table or something."

Kyle laughed. "My parents adore you and I guess this is their way of finally acknowledging that we're adults."

"Damn fine time for it," Jason whispered. "I can't believe that I actually told your parents… about my dad."

"You were really brave to tell them," Kyle told him, reaching up and stroking down his messy dark curls in a way that made him feel like a spoiled cat.

"Well I hope I have a lot more bravery where that came from. You have no idea how much the idea of talking to a social worker scares the crap out of me." He buried his face in Kyle's shoulder, drawing strength from his boyfriend's presence.

"You're the bravest person I've ever known. Look at everything you've done so far! You'll get through this and Missy will be safe from your father."

Jason smiled sadly. "Only because you've been there to help me. I get the feeling that I'm going to need you a lot over the next few weeks."

Even though Jason believed that he was more sexually attracted to women's bodies than he was to men's, he knew that he was better off with Kyle than he had been with Debra. Even though Kyle could definitely act like a drama queen when things weren't going his way – like after Jason's TV interview or after that chick in Texas had kissed him – he also overflowed with love and support and whenever Jason felt like he couldn't handle the pressure he was over, Kyle gave him the strength to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders.

"Where else would I want to be?" Kyle asked him in a reassuring tone. "I'm exactly where I belong."

Jason leaned over Kyle and gave him a few warm kisses then laid half on top of his boyfriend, soaking up his warmth as he dozed off.

In the morning, Jason woke up alone in Kyle's bed feeling rather abandoned. He got up and stretched before suddenly cursing heatedly at seeing 8:25 glowing on the clock.

"Hey, I was just coming to wake you up. What's wrong?" Kyle asked as he breezed into the room, buttoning up his shirt.

"It's Monday, isn't it? I have to call in to work and tell my super that I can't make it in. Then call my Ma's boss…."

Kyle reached up and gently stroked his hair, and Jason found himself nuzzling into his palm. "Don't miss work. If you're going to be getting involved in a child abuse case and a custody battle with your father, there are going to be a lot of court dates and things like that…. It would be better to save up those days for when you absolutely need them."

"But who's going to watch Missy? I _know_ your parents are both gone by now and I can't pay a babysitter."

"Well what am I here for then? I don't have work until later this afternoon, and my mom should be home by then."

Jason sat up, making Kyle's head slip to his thigh. "I can't ask you to do that. Missy's my responsibility."

"So are you going to be taking the next few weeks off?" Kyle asked, staring up at him calmly. "And what are you going to do with her if you do get custody? Just let me help you, Jason; don't be so stubborn."

Jason crossed his arms and, well, pouted. Kyle was always accusing him of being stubborn or letting his pride get in the way of accepting help when he needed it. Even though he had almost flunked his psychology class, he wouldn't call Nelson's ex to get the old tests or notes until Kyle had stood over him and _forced_ him to.

Still, he wasn't sure if this was a great idea. Kyle was an only child and even though Missy definitely wouldn't be hard to watch, what if something happened? What if Missy got sick or something?

Kyle gently brushed his fingers over Jason's cheek. "Trust me," he insisted. "Things will be okay."

Jason eyed him but finally nodded. "Alright. I guess a full-grown adult can handle one monkey of a seven-year-old." He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Also, I should probably talk to a couple of people if I'm actually going to file an abuse case against my dad."

"Like who?"

"Well, Corey's parents. Coach Cameron, too. My Aunt Claire, and Aunt Anna if she can. Her husband is my dad's brother, so…."

"Everything will be okay, Jason," Kyle comforted. "You have people who love you." Kyle leaned up to kiss him deeply and Jason felt assured that Kyle was one of them.

After work, Jason forced himself to go visit a man he would usually have been thrilled to see. Since Whitman was still in session and it was only 5:15, Coach should definitely still be there. He should have poked his head into the office and gotten a visitor's pass if he was going to be wandering around campus, but he was going straight to the gym and everyone knew him anyway.

He opened the door and stepped inside, watching Coach run the team through 'death lunges'. He grinned cruelly. He would have felt more sympathy if he hadn't gone through it for four years.

Suddenly Tim, one of the underclassmen that had sort of hero-worshiped him, caught sight of him and froze, making a kid Jason didn't recognize run right into the back of him.

"Myer, what the hell are you doing?!" Coach demanded before following Tim's gaze right to him.

Jason raised an eyebrow and wandered over. "Hey, Coach," he said, extending his hand.

"Carrillo. This is a surprise. Come to check out the team?"

Jason grinned. "Second in the state, they're _almost_ as good as we were. Or maybe their coach is just losing his edge."

"Not a chance," Coach Cameron growled. "So what's up?"

"I, ah… need to talk to you about something kind of personal once you kick the team out," Jason admitted. "You don't mind, do you?"

Coach eyed him curiously. "I have time. This is the last drill I'm running them through today anyway."

Jason nodded and watched them. Playing on the community college team wasn't horrible; the few of his teammates who had problems with his sexuality had grown to respect him at least on the court, his new coach had followed Coach Cameron's policy about sexuality-based insults, and even though they weren't undefeated they were a decent team.

But none of that stopped him from missing his old team. Well, all but Dwayne. He and Corey still called once every few weeks (he and Cindy were all but engaged), Skip and his new bride had a sweet baby boy, and Andre was still breaking hearts. Over winter break, the entire group had gotten together to bitch about college classes and reflect on good times.

And his old team did something his new team didn't. They at least asked about Kyle.

When the coach dismissed the team, Tim and Tom both rushed over to see him. They both shook his hand enthusiastically. "How are you doing, Jason?" Tom demanded.

"I'm alright," he said truthfully. "Not great, but…. You know how it is." He didn't want to depress them by going into details.

"Man, I hear ya," Tim agreed. "I have Perez now and he's a total hard-ass. Think I can borrow your old math tutor?"

"Not on your life, you uppity little shit," Jason told him.

Tim grinned and he and Tom took off for the showers.

"Carrillo!"

Jason followed Coach into his office and sat down in the familiar vinyl chair while Coach Cameron closed the door.

"Now what the hell is so important?"

He crossed his arms over his chest thoughtfully. "Yesterday morning… and I'm talking at about three in the morning… my ma got hit by a drunk driver. She didn't make it."

Coach Cameron's mouth opened slightly with surprise. "I'm sorry, son," he said with surprising emotion. "What are you going to do?"

"Well, at least I have one more year of school paid for." He sighed. "For now I'm living with Kyle's family. My little sister is there, too, but…. I thought my mom was working on divorce papers. She _told_ me she was! But my dad showed up at the hospital and no one has any record of it. And he's Missy's legal guardian."

Coach nodded slowly and Jason knew he understood. Even though Jason had never talked to Coach Cameron about the abuse, he was fairly sure Coach knew exactly what was going on; it was half of the reason he was there. "But she's with you?"

"Yeah. I managed to convince the social worker to let her stay with me for a few weeks. But I'm really worried that they're going to go ahead and give my old man custody. That's why, um…." He trailed off nervously and looked down at his hands.

Coach Cameron leaned forward and gave him a pointed look.

"I want to file child abuse charges against my dad for the things he used to do to me," Jason whispered.

The coach collapsed back in his chair and stroked his chin as he stared at Jason thoughtfully. "You just can't make small decisions can you, Carrillo?"

"Apparently not. But they're going to need more than just my word for it. Especially because of the custody issue. I'm going to need people who can back me up. I… I need your help, Coach."

"… I can't lie and say I didn't suspect it," Coach Cameron said seriously. "And I'll tell them as much. But maybe you can give me a few starting points so I can sift through what's relevant and what's not."

Jason nodded and nibbled on his fingernail, something he had only recently started doing again. "Most of the time it was just yelling at me. Calling me 'worthless' and 'stupid'. 'Fairy boy' and 'pansy'. He even called me a 'faggot' in front of the social worker. Unless I can get my aunts and uncle on my side, though, I doubt I'll be able to prove it. Um… remember when I had to miss a few games back in tenth grade because I was in a sling?"

Coach Cameron nodded, jaw tight.

"I got in between him and Ma and he shoved me hard enough to screw up my arm. He would grab me really tight by the wrist or arm whenever I would try and walk away from an argument. A lot of those times I was staying at Corey's were because I was trying to get away from him for a few days."

"Can I ask you a few questions?" Coach Cameron asked. "A few specific instances that I remember?"

Jason nodded and wiped his palms on his pants. This was really hard to talk about, but at least he had started with someone he really trusted.

"One time you ended up on your back after a foul. You started bleeding so I had you take your shirt off so I could see if you were alright. You had a ton of cuts, about an inch long, all over your back."

He closed his eyes and tried to remember. "I can't remember why I wasn't wearing a shirt around the house, but we got into another fight… and he threw his beer bottle at me. It shattered and some of the glass got me."

Coach Cameron sighed. "I really did suspect this. But I knew that even if I asked you won't have told me."

"I wouldn't have," Jason said, sensing that Coach was feeling guilty for not stepping in for him before. "I had too much pride. But Missy's safety is more important than my ego."

The coach looked at him for a moment before actually cracking a real smile! "Carrillo, I have to tell you, out of all the kids I've coached over all the years, you're the one I'm most proud of. You're one hell of a man."

Jason blushed bright red. "Thanks, Coach. That really means a lot."


	6. Kyle II

_**DISCLAIMER:**_ Still don't own the Rainbow Boys. But that's okay; writing fanfiction is almost as good.

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ To make up for Kyle's chapter being shortest out of the first three, I'm giving him a longer chapter than Jason this time. Hopefully I'll get this done as a birthday present for myself, because Kyle's my favorite character~!

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CHAPTER FIVE - Kyle

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Kyle picked Melissa up as soon as Jason left for work. "So you don't mind me watching you while Jason's at work do you, Missy?"

She shook her head rapidly. "I don't mind! You're really fun, too."

He laughed. "Did my mom make you breakfast before she went to work?" he asked her.

"Yeah! Your mom's nice! She made me toast with peanut-butter and cinnamon!"

Kyle smiled and made her lean back a bit. "No need to yell; I can hear just fine. That was one of my favorites when I was about your age. Well how would you like to help me make something to eat?"

"Okay."

Kyle carried her into the kitchen and sat her on the counter, shaking out his arms slightly. Jason made that look so easy! Apparently a swimmer's muscles were different than a basketball player's. He opened the refrigerator and pulled out the milk then opened the cabinet for some cereal. He felt horrible for not waking Jason up soon enough that he could have something to eat, but he promised himself he'd take care of his boyfriend the next morning.

He handed Melissa the cereal as he laid a bowl on the counter. "Alright, you see the blue ring? Pour right up to that."

Melissa nodded and poured the Cheerios into the bowl. Kyle added the milk and grabbed a spoon, taking a huge bite. "Perfect!" he announced once he'd swallowed. "You're a good little chef."

"Can I have a bite?"

He frowned – was that really a good idea? – but got some on the spoon for her and held it out so she could take it.

He finished his breakfast and put the bowl in the sink. "So do you want to play something?" Kyle asked her. "I'm afraid we don't have game systems or anything like that, but I have some games on my computer and we have board games."

Missy turned around and climbed down backwards off the counter. "Can I see your computer games?"

"Sure." Melissa slipped her hand into his and he took her upstairs, shaking the mouse to wake his computer from hibernation mode. Lucky for him, he'd changed the screensaver; now – instead of Jason's yearbook picture – it was a slideshow of both of them and Nelson and Manny. Slightly less embarrassing for him.

"Let's see… I have mostly old games," he admitted, "like Frogger and the old Age of Empires games."

"What's 'Frogger'?" she asked, giggling at the funny word.

"Well, it's a game where you control a frog hopping across the street or through factories, things like that." He clicked on the icon and waited for the game to load.

Melissa sat down in the chair but snuggled herself against his side. "I'm glad we're staying here with you for a few days," she told him. "You're really fun."

Kyle smiled, feeling his heart blush from how sweet her words were. "I think you're fun, too." He stayed with her, first showing her how to play then cheering her on and giving her advice until she finally ran out of frogs.

"This is a really old game, isn't it?" she asked him with a smile.

"Yeah. I used to play it when I was a kid." He ran his fingers through her wavy dark hair. It was just as thick and smooth as Jason's and Kyle grinned, trying to imagine what she would look like in a few years. Well, he personally thought her brother was the most handsome man on the planet, so she would probably be a real beauty.

"Can you do hair?" she asked him, looking excited. "Mama would always brush my hair out and put it in a braid so it would be wavy." Suddenly, she paused and her smile disappeared.

Kyle felt so bad for her. She was so young, yet she had just lost her mother and was in the middle of the battle between her brother and father. At her age, he didn't even know what 'death' was; he just knew that his first goldfish wasn't coming back. Jason was an adult and even though he was hurting he was used to being strong, but poor Missy was just a little girl.

"Well… I'm not great at it, but I know how," Kyle admitted, trying not to let his thoughts show on his face. "My friend Shay is a hairdresser, so I picked a few things up from her. How about we go downstairs? We can watch a movie or something."

"Alright." Melissa ran downstairs and Kyle poked into his parents' room to grab one of his mom's brushes.

Taking care of Jason's sister was pretty fun. She was just a happy, playful little girl. Kyle wondered how much Jason had suffered to keep her that way; what would it have taken to keep their dad from going after her?

How unfair was it that undeserving heterosexual couples got to have children only to mistreat them like Jason and Melissa's father? And even though he would never ever say it, he also felt like their mother had failed them. Jason said that she had always tried to ignore the abuse or pretend that it wasn't that bad. Kyle felt like a parent's responsibility was to protect their child. But because he was gay, it would be an uphill battle for him to ever get children. It seemed so stupid.

He put one of his old movies for her, making a mental note to drop "Kiss of the Spider Woman" and "Transporter 2" back at Blockbuster on his way into work later. Then he sat her in front of the TV and knelt behind her, brushing out her hair and pulling it into a thick, silky rope.

"Kyle? If I slept down here last night, where did Jason sleep?" she asked him suddenly turning around.

He blushed as red as ketchup and dropped the brush on his leg, leaving a stinging mark. He knew she was aware that he and Jason were not normal friends – she had walked in on them kissing last January and again when he was home for Christmas break – but that didn't mean that he wasn't embarrassed!

"Um, he slept up in my room, Missy," he said, deciding to be honest with her instead of being a hypocrite.

"Oh. Is that because you and Jason are good friends?"

"Yeah," he choked out, "um, Jason and I talk at night so it's just better."

She eyed him for a minute, looking more like a wary parent then a curious little sister, but then she shrugged and turned back to the movie.

When the movie was over, Melissa told him that she was hungry again, so Kyle took her into the kitchen and had her help him make turkey sandwiches and popcorn then set two places at the table. He kind of liked taking care of Jason's little sister. He could really see himself a few years down the road, running around to feed several small children breakfast before he had to leave for work and Jason ambling downstairs fussing and fighting with his cuff buttons. The thought made him grin; he had always wanted a family like that.

But if Jason did get custody of Melissa, that image might be coming true far sooner than he ever planned on. Kyle knew he would never abandon Jason, but was he at twenty-years-old ready to be a 'parent'?

When his mom got home, Kyle ran upstairs to change into a pair of khakis and a button-down blue shirt so that he wouldn't be late for work. He was thrilled not to be working at Chicken Little Rotisserie again after he had refused to eat anything but salad at fast food restaurants until November, but he didn't want to make an impression on his new boss. But he felt horrible making his mom watch his boyfriend's sister.

It was ten-o'clock before he got back home, tired from working a full four-hour shift then cleaning up and straightening for another hour past closing. He walked into the house and almost tripped when Melissa ran at him and hugged his legs.

"Missy!" Jason shouted, "Get off of him." He knelt and grabbed her wrists gently, pulling her hands from Kyle's pants.

"I'm alright," Kyle assured him, managing a tired smile. "I'm just not used to being on my feet for five hours straight. I've gotten lazy sitting in classrooms all day."

Jason grinned and Kyle waited until he shooed Melissa away before moving closer and giving him a tender kiss. "Was your day okay?" Kyle asked hopefully.

"… Yeah. I got all the joy of telling my mom's boss that he should start looking for a new legal clerk…."

Kyle sighed and gently gripped Jason's hand, taking him to the couch to sit down and talk. "You've got to be the strongest person I've ever known," he told his boyfriend. "I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing, though." He didn't know how to tell Jason that it worried him how cold Jason was being about his mother's death. He had cried, but only the once.

But Jason seemed to understand. "I have to be. For the past year I've been playing 'man of the house' when every other boy my age is getting plastered at frat parties or studying their asses off. Plus, if Missy sees me upset it's only going to make her that much worse. Believe me… I'm not doing all that well."

Kyle reached up and stroked Jason's hair. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything."

"Nah. I'm not mad." Jason put an arm around his waist and Kyle felt better. "I stopped by Whitman after school to talk to Coach Cameron. He… if I do file charges against my dad, he's willing to support me. I didn't stop by to see Corey's parents yet. I called him when I got home and I'm going over there tomorrow. Shit! I forgot to call Aunt Claire. My dad doesn't like her much; I doubt he would have done it."

"You can't do everything, Jason," Kyle whispered, giving him a series of soft pecks on the lips.

"Boys!"

Kyle turned red from the roots of his hair to the tips of his toes and scrambled off of Jason, looking anywhere but at his mom who was standing in the doorway to the kitchen with her arms crossed over her chest, frowning disapprovingly.

"Um… I was just going to call my aunt," Jason mumbled, moving towards the stairs.

Kyle gaped after him, unable to believe Jason had just abandoned him to the wolves. "Mom-!"

She held her hand up to stop him. "I understand that you're both adults now. That's why your father and I aren't saying anything about Jason sleeping in your room. But this is still your parents' house. If you're going to be doing things like that, we would appreciate you doing them in your room. What if Melissa saw you?"

He thought it was probably a bad time to admit that she had. "So I guess last year's 'keep my door open' rule is overridden?"

"As long as you promise to be responsible, Kyle."

Even though he hadn't thought he could get any redder, he managed it somehow. "We always are."

She reached up and pinched the bridge of her nose, waving him off with the other hand. She didn't have to tell him twice. He ran upstairs to give Jason a piece of his mind but when he stormed into his room, he paused at the sight of his boyfriend curled up amongst the pillows against the headboard, twirling the phone cord around his fingers. His eyes were sad and he looked like a little boy.

He walked over and sat next to him, snuggling himself into Jason's lap. Strong arms wrapped around him and gave him a squeeze. "I know, Aunt Claire. Yes. I can't say for sure. No… no, I haven't heard anything…. I would really appreciate it."

Kyle leaned his head against Jason's chest and sat with him while he talked to his mom's sister. Finally, Jason said "Thanks, Aunt Claire. It means a lot." A minute later, he hung up the phone.

"My aunt told me that she's going to take care of my mom's funeral arrangements," he whispered, "if my dad doesn't. Cheap drunken bastard probably doesn't even care. And I have no idea what to do."

"She sounds like a nice woman," Kyle offered.

"She really is. But her husband and my dad got into a huge fight a few years ago so she never came around. Missy and I would always get cards and stuff on our birthdays though. She's the one who got me my weight set."

Kyle smiled and hugged Jason.

"What did your mom say?"

"I shouldn't tell you after you left me like that! But she said that she would prefer it if we kept things like that up here in my room. Apparently we've found the difference between seventeen and nineteen."

"Barely nineteen," Jason joked lightly.

"Oh hush." They sat there for a few minutes until Kyle's stomach growled. "I think I need an after-work snack. Want to come with me?"

"Yeah."

Kyle took Jason's hand as they went downstairs, then Jason sat at the table while Kyle dished out two small bowls of ice cream for them.

His dad walked in and got his own bowl, joining the two at the table. Kyle eyed him warily. His dad wasn't a big ice cream fan and wouldn't actually sit down with them unless he wanted to talk. He was right.

"I called a lawyer today to get some advice on what your options are, Jason," his dad said bluntly. "Things aren't looking good, and I don't just mean with Melissa."

"What do you mean?" Kyle asked, almost afraid of what his dad would say.

"If Jason's parents weren't officially filing for divorce… then the house and most everything in it officially belong to his father."

"Fuck!" Jason kicked the underside of the table, jarring it.

Kyle stared at him, wide-eyed, and Jason turned as red as a tomato. "I'm sorry," he muttered, eying Kyle's dad guiltily.

"It's alright," he said even though he looked surprised. "But there is one thing… Kyle mentioned that you were working part-time while you were going to classes?"

Kyle glared at his dad over the table. He wasn't going to kick Jason out, was he? Between going to classes fifteen hours a week, basketball practice so he could stay on the team and pay for his classes, and a part-time job, Jason would never have time to sleep, let alone take care of Melissa!

Jason nodded. "Yeah. I wasn't making much, though. I helped Ma with bills and stuff like that. I didn't exactly manage to get a ton of money tucked away."

"That's actually for the best," his dad informed Jason. "As long as you were over eighteen and giving your mother money, you were legally a paying boarder. That means you can get anything in the house that was yours. It might not seem like much, but it will be come out to a lot of small things you wouldn't have thought about."

Kyle thought about what that meant. Jason could get all of his clothes, his weight set, and the rest of his things.

"Anna and I have also come to another decision, and this is even more important. Anna!"

Kyle glanced at the door as his mom walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table. "Your sister's watching cartoons," she told Jason, "because we need to talk."

"Jason, what are you planning to do after you finish your second year at community college?"

"Um… I guess that will depend on whether or not I get Missy. But I had planned on transferring to Tech. It will eat up all of the money I have saved up and I'll have to work the entire way through unless I can get student loans. But without a parent to co-sign…." Jason sighed. "I feel like such a bad person for saying this, but it sure won't hurt if Ma left me some money."

"You're being realistic. If you're completely on your own this year, even without your sister you'll still have to pay for a place to live, food, and transportation back and forth between a job to pay for them. You would probably have to leave school."

Kyle paled and his hand darted out, grabbing Jason's. He couldn't imagine Jason having to give up school! "Isn't there anything that can be done?!" he demanded. Jason was squeezing his fingers so tight that they were almost white.

His dad held up a hand to calm them both down. "Anna and I have made a decision. With Kyle off at Princeton, we're not paying for his food and his room open. If he's willing to loan it out, you can move in here; I get the feeling you won't be able to work anything out with your father."

His jaw dropped open as he stared at his dad. "You really mean it?"

"I can't ask you to do that," Jason argued, but Kyle knew that it was just his pride that was keeping him from pouncing on the offer.

"You didn't," his mom said. "We're offering. Jason, you've become a member of the family over the past year. We want to help you."

"But… I mean… I don't know how to say this without it being rude."

Kyle caught on and spoke up for him. "Can we really take him in and cover all of my expenses up at Princeton? It's not exactly a cheap school."

"It will mean a lot of budgeting, but we should be able to make it work."

"I'll get a part-time job to help with my school costs," Kyle offered immediately. Fifteen hours at Princeton wasn't anything like fifteen hours somewhere else and he had to do a ton of studying out of class, but he would make it work somehow as long as it would help Jason. He couldn't believe his parents were doing this, but in a good way! He had been so thankful that they had agreed to let Melissa and Jason stay for a while so Jason could keep her for a few weeks and figure out what he was going to do, but this was even more monumental. Plus it was his mother's words about Jason being part of the family; his heart warmed in his chest.

"We'll have to talk about that once we see how things work out," his dad said, apparently not thrilled.

"But what if I _do_ get Missy?" Jason asked quietly.

"If they give you custody of your sister, your father will still have to pay child support. Until she's eighteen, that's the law. So we'll be getting some help," his dad explained.

"Jason," Kyle urged, running his free hand across his boyfriend's shoulder, "say yes! That way you won't have to leave school and you'll have two great parents around to help you." His mom and dad smiled softly. "Please."

"… I don't see any way I can refuse."


	7. Nelson II

_**DISCLAIMER:**_ Still don't own. I think I might just stop putting this. I mean, by chapter six you guys should know this. Right?

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ I screamed like a banshee when I found the American version of the "Rainbow Boys" movie they made in Thailand! You would figure they would have mentioned that the American version is called "Right By Me"!

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CHAPTER SIX - Nelson

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It took Nelson a whole three days to work up the courage to call Kyle and confess what he'd done. He knew that Kyle would be disappointed in him and probably lecture him until his ears were bleeding, but he deserved it and Kyle would give him great advice once the ranting was done.

He wondered how much he had missed back east over the year he'd been gone; since when did Jason answer the phone at Kyle's? Apparently he was missing all the fun.

Manny still had no idea what Nelson had done. How could he tell him that he'd randomly screwed one of Manny's school friends in a filthy back alley when he was plastered? He felt like a nasty slut and for the past three days he hadn't wanted to fool around with Manny at all because he felt too dirty to soil Manny with his disloyalty.

He hoped that talking to Kyle would help him figure out what he was going to do; thus why he was pacing around the living room a half-hour after Manny left for a night class, listening to the other end of the phone line ring.

After a few seconds, Kyle picked up. "Hello?"

"Kyle? It's Nelson."

"Oh, hey! How are you? You sounded really upset when you called the other night. I meant to call you back, but things are going crazy here."

"Yeah?" Nelson sat down on the couch and kicked his feet onto the coffee table. "Crazy how?"

"Well…. Jason's mom got into a car wreck a couple of nights ago… she didn't make it."

"Holy shit!" He hadn't expected to hear something like that. He could only imagine how bad Jason was feeling; he knew he would be a total wreck if his mom died. "Poor Jay-jay! Tell him Nelson sends a huge, screaming hug!"

Kyle laughed nervously from the other end of the line. "Um, yeah, sure. Anyway, since his mom never officially divorced his dad, his dad could still get custody of his little sister. So Jason's going to file a report on his dad for all of the things he did when Jason was a kid…."

"Definitely sounds crazy. I guess for the three of us, chaos just comes in bunches…."

"Nelson? Tell me what's going on. You were bawling the other night but hung up before telling me what was wrong."

He sank down on the couch cushions, picking at his fingernails. "You… promise not to yell at me if I tell you?"

"Is this going to involve another HIV scare? Because I'm killing you if you put me through that again."

"Nothing that bad. But, um… it does have to do with sex."

"I don't want to hear details about what you and Manny did the other night. Really, I don't."

Nelson gulped but admitted, "It wasn't with Manny."

He waited nervously for Kyle's response and wasn't disappointed when Kyle exploded. "What on Earth are you talking about?! Nelson, what kind of stupid thing did you get yourself into?!"

"You promised not to yell," he whined, holding the phone away from his ear. "Look, I might have… kind of slept with this other guy at a party we went to. I know it was totally stupid, okay? I was plastered out of my mind!"

"Being drunk isn't an excuse," Kyle insisted even though he did stop yelling. "Poor Manny must be feeling so hurt right now."

"He might be… if I'd told him."

"Nelson!"

He flinched, hoping the yelling wasn't about to start again. Wasn't Kyle supposed to be the calm one? He was sounding more like Nelson's mom!

"I know, I know! Jeez…. What am I going to do, Kyle?"

"You're going to have to tell Manny," Kyle said firmly.

That was the last thing Nelson wanted to hear! "What if he hates me?" Nelson demanded. "See… the other guy… he was one of Manny's community college buddies."

"Oh, Nelson, you're kidding me!"

Nelson sighed. "Nope. When I fuck up, I fuck up big time."

"I won't disagree with you there. You just can't make small decisions. I wish I knew what to tell you."

Nelson thought about it for a minute. Kyle had a point; he had no idea what kind of advice to give in that situation; he was so sickeningly loyal to Jason that he wouldn't even date anyone else when the jock princess was still in the closet. But maybe Jason would have some pearls of wisdom? He had somehow navigated his way back into Kyle's good graces after the whole Leah thing the summer before. Maybe he had some amazing advice on how to get a lover to forgive a tiny indiscretion.

"Can I talk to Jason?" he begged, deciding to run with that hope.

Kyle hesitated for a minute before sighing warily. "Alright, but don't upset him. He's stressed enough lately."

The phone crackled as it passed hands then he heard Jason and Kyle talking for a minute before a door closed. "Hey, buddy," Jason said, "I got rid of the housewife. Wha's up?"

Nelson sighed but repeated the whole story (with a bit more detail since Jason could handle it better than Kyle).

"The fuck, man," Jason muttered appreciatively. "You get yourself into some wild situations."

"Tell me about it," he groaned. "What am I supposed to do now?"

The line grew loud with static as Jason sighed into the receiver. "You're not going to like hearing me say this," he warned, "but you've got to tell him."

Nelson cursed under his breath and hopped up, pacing. "It's advice like that that made me tell Kyle to give the phone to you."

"Sorry, dude, but he's not always wrong. The longer you keep it a secret, the worse it's going to be when he finds out. Plus, if he finds out from someone else it will be fifty times worse."

"The other guy promised not to tell," Nelson said desperately, trying to justify not telling Manny even though he knew that was the weakest thing he could have possibly said.

"And you don't think you'll feel like shit, keeping a secret like that? You could crawl in bed with Manny and be okay? Or start doing it and not feel dirty?"

Nelson scowled and picked at his fingernails. "I fucking hate you sometimes. How could I even explain it to him?"

"Start with 'remember that night we all got plastered at that club'," Jason suggested. "Not that being drunk excuses it."

"You think I don't know that! Goddamn it, since when do I have two consciences?"

"Since one obviously couldn't keep your ass out of trouble," Jason asked. Nelson scowled; the fucker sounded like he was chuckling!

He wished he was talking face-to-face with Jason so he could flip him off!

"Hey, man, I gotta go; I can hear Missy coming down the hall."

"I understand. Can't imagine being in your position. I feel for you. Bye, Jay-jay."

"Bye, Nelly."

Nelson hung up and tossed the phone onto the couch cushions. It had been worth a try, but apparently Jason had been domesticated. Well, Kyle was probably pretty scary with that whip.

He heard a key scrape into the front door lock and jerked. Was Manny home already?! But he still hadn't made up his mind what to do! He turned to race back to the bedroom but was relieved when he heard the voice through the wood.

"Hey, Nelson," Ernesto greeted as he walked in, tossing his keys on the counter. "What are you doing? Watching soaps and eating bon-bons?"

"Screw you," Nelson shot back, jokingly. Ernesto was always teasing him like that. "I've got to go to work in an hour."

"What fun." Ernesto threw himself onto the couch and put his feet in Nelson's lap. Then he frowned and squirmed, reaching under his ass and pulling out the phone receiver. "Call waiting with the gal-pals?"

"No need now. Jason's living with Kyle."

"Oh?" Ernesto had never gotten to meet the two, but Nelson talked about them all the time so he would at least be familiar with them.

"Yeah. Long story."

"Don't care **that** much."

Nelson grinned but it faded quickly. "Hey, Nes? Can I ask you something really serious?"

"You, serious?" Ernesto grinned and relaxed on the couch pillows. "Alright, sure. What is it?"

"Um… if you were dating someone and they slept with, I don't know, Manny… would you want to know?"

"Since I don't date guys and Manny definitely wouldn't sleep with a girl, I can't see that happening. Wait, are you trying to tell me Manny's bi?"

"No!" Nelson said, frustrated. "Fine, not Manny. If your girlfriend slept with one of your straight friends. Would you want her to tell you about it?"

"Definitely. Wait, why are you asking?" His chocolate eyes went wide. "Do you know something about Angela that I don't?"

"No, no, no!" He sighed. Why was this coming out all wrong? "Um… do you think Manny would want to know if somebody ever cheated on him?"

Ernesto sat up, moving his feet from Nelson's lap. "Oh Nelson. You didn't!"

"Shh!" Nelson hissed furiously. "I… God, I was totally drunk out of my mind. I did something stupid, and yes I know it was stupid. Trust me, I know."

"When was this?" Ernesto asked, reaching up and pressing on his temples like Nelson had given him an instant headache. Nelson understood; he had one too.

"Three nights ago, when we were at that huge rave run by the guy who owns that art gallery."

"… Who was the other guy?"

Nelson bit his bottom lip thoughtfully. Ernesto and Manny were best friends. They would know each other's friends. Could he really tell Ernesto that he slept with David? "You've got to promise me that you aren't going to hate me!" he wailed.

"Nelson! Who was he?"

"That David guy from school!"

Ernesto jumped up and cussed. "Damn it! Nelson, David's a whore! In fact, and you didn't hear this from me, you remember Cameron?"

Nelson nodded, lip curling up. Manny's ex. The one he had been with for three months; the last guy he had dated before Hurricane Nelson whirled into his life. "Yeah, I remember. Manny goes down on him then tries to get the guy to return the favor. Jackass tells Manny he needs some time to think; that he's starting to wonder if he's not gay.

"Which, ironically, I found out is very close to the opposite of what happened with Jason and his ex-girlfriend."

"Twitchy!" Ernesto flinched and his right eye squinted. "But at least he didn't do to that chick what Cameron did to Manny."

"What are you talking about?" Nelson asked, having never heard any more than what Manny told him.

Ernesto sighed. "Not but a few days later, Cameron slept with David."

"Shit!"

"Yeah. Apparently he's one of those competitive jackasses who feels like less of a man if he's not pissing in another dog's yard."

That analogy was less than charming, but Nelson got the picture. A few of the guys in his and Kyle's old Rainbow Youth Group were always dating their friend's exes. He had always thought that was the worst thing in the world! He would never in a million, billion years consider dating Jason even if he and Kyle broke up.

"So you mean he only went after me because I'm Manny's boyfriend?" That kind of pissed him off. Apparently it wasn't his cheerful personality or sexy body that had enticed David to do something crazy; instead, it was who he was screwing. If it weren't for the fact that David had sworn he would deny it, Nelson would swear that he had done it just to dangle in front of Manny's nose.

"As sucky as it is, probably." Ernesto sighed. "I never told him about Cameron and David because I knew it would tear Manny to shreds; as far as he knows, Cameron's still straight. I never imagined David would actually go after you while you and Manny were still together."

"What should I do?" Nelson demanded desperately.

"You've got to tell him, Nelson. The sooner the better."

"Do I have to do it right away?" he asked. "I mean… can't I at least wait until the weekend or something? If I tell him on a weeknight, he'll be in class with David the next day. If I wait until Friday, hopefully he won't freak out."

Ernesto sighed and moved towards him, swinging an arm over his shoulders. "I think it's a bad idea," he told Nelson, "but it's your choice. I just hope you know how you're going to tell him."

Nelson had no clue. That was why he was grateful for the reprieve.


	8. Jason III

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ Okay, "Right By Me" was amaaaaaazing! Nelson's story was mostly absent though; no one-night-stand with Brick and only a single appearance by an unnamed Jeremy. But Jason and Kyle fans won't be disappointed. I sure wasn't. ((BTW, the scene after Jason's dad leaves home? So hot.))

Also, I realize that Alex Sanchez doesn't make more than a few passing comments about Jason's religion but I threw it in because births, weddings, and funerals are three very religious events. I looked up all of the information online, so I can't guarantee it's accuracy. **Please do not attack me if the information is incorrect. I don't mean to offend anyone.**

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CHAPTER SEVEN - Jason

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Jason clenched his teeth as he flipped up the collar of his freshly-pressed white collared shirt. There was no way around it; it was going to be a shitty day. Between introducing his boyfriend to his family and the priest at St. Andrew's, his mother's funeral, and having to let Missy leave the funeral with his father, he was going to need Kyle's support more than ever.

"Do you need help?" Kyle asked, stepping into the bedroom in a neat, dark outfit.

"Nah, I've got it." He picked up the black tie and slid it around his neck, tying it neatly before bringing his collar back down. "Thank God someone else handled all of the details. I wouldn't have had any idea what to do."

Kyle moved behind him and Jason managed a small smile when he felt the lithe swimmer arms wrap around him. "I'm surprised… that my family and I are welcome."

Jason turned around and rested his forehead against Kyle's. "I pretty much insisted on it." He tapped their lips together then admitted, "I need you to be with me."

Kyle smiled and kissed him back before stepping away. "I'm kind of worried, though; how is your family going to react when they see me with you?"

He frowned and brought his hand up, biting thoughtfully at a fingernail. That was one of the things he was most worried about. Even though everyone at the funeral who had any contact with the outside world would know he was gay, knowing it in theory and seeing him with his boyfriend were two different things. And even though he didn't exactly cling to his faith, would the more religious people start a huge fuss? Not only would it be humiliating for him, but it would hurt Kyle so much.

But it's not like _their_ disapproval would change him. His mother's disapproval of his sexuality hadn't stopped him from finding a boyfriend, and that was the hard part!

"I don't care," he said, firmly. "Anyone who thinks my mother's funeral is an acceptable place to lecture me on my sexual orientation is the one with a problem."

He stepped away from Kyle and picked up the jacket hanging over the back of the desk chair. "I'm sure something will be said. I'm not exactly going to impress anyone by bringing a non-Catholic male date to my mother's funeral."

"Will my religion matter as much as my gender?"

Jason shrugged. "Only if they're looking for something else to pick at us about. Catholics are only supposed to marry other Catholics so that our _children_ will be raised Catholic. But my family was more like 'holiday churchgoers'. You know – Easter, Christmas, and a few other significant days."

"Was Debra-?"

"Nope. But finding someone who will put up with me is a hard enough without a religious stigma on who I can or can't date."

Kyle laughed. "I'm not going to argue with you. But… I know different religions have different customs for things like weddings and funerals.... Is there anything…?"

"Yeah. I'm hoping I can catch your parents for a few minutes before we leave. I would rather keep the scandal under control if you know what I mean."

"Do you want me to get them sat down in one place?"

"That would be nice. I should go check on Missy." Kyle hurried out the door and Jason finished buttoning up his jacket sleeves before going down to the bathroom where Melissa was getting ready. He knocked on the door and stepped in. "How are you doing, Missy?"

She turned around and looked up at him. She looked beautiful with her hair slightly curled and pushed back with a headband. He smiled and knelt down. "I'm going to be beating the boys off with sticks if I ever let you start dating."

Melissa laughed quietly and hugged him. "You look really handsome."

"You look handsome, too," he teased, picking her up. "I'm going to have to talk to Kyle and his parents for a minute, so can you entertain yourself until it's time to go?" She nodded and he carried her down the stairs and to the living room. He put her on the couch and walked into the kitchen – that just seemed to be the meeting place in the Meeks' household.

He pulled out a chair and sat down, shaking his head. "I'm dreading this," he admitted.

"Everything will be okay, Jason," Kyle's mom assured him.

"I don't mean the funeral, I mean this conversation."

"Kyle hinted that there are some… I guess customs? that we need to be aware of," Mr. Meeks started indelicately.

Jason nodded. "Yeah. Unfortunately."

"That's not a big deal," Mrs. Meeks said. "Every different religion has its own ways. What kinds of things should we do or not do?"

He sighed, relieved that they weren't upset. "Well… this is going to sound so stupid, but there's a lot of movement. Up, down, up, down, cross, genuflect, etcetera. And it's not always easy to know when to do what. Unfortunately, the best I can give you is to follow my lead.

"Oh!" he piped up, remembering suddenly. "A lot of the prayers are going to be in Latin. Don't worry," he added, grinning sardonically at Kyle who looked worried, "I don't understand a word of it, either. But the signum crucis, the sign of the cross? You can do that in English. I don't foresee anyone throwing a fit over that."

"In English?" Kyle repeated.

"'In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost'. Not that revolutionary when you think about it." He frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. "Also… you really shouldn't take communion. That I _can_ see people throwing a fit over."

"I guess we should have thought about all of this before right now," Kyle's dad grumbled.

"That was mostly my fault," Jason confessed, "I wouldn't have even thought about it now unless I hadn't been reminded." He sighed and pressed on his temples. "I'm already getting such a headache."

When they finally got to the church, Aunt Claire hurried over and squeezed him so tight that he thought his head would pop off of his shoulders. "Oh Jason!" she crooned, stepping back to arm's length, "you look so grown up now!"

He turned dark red, wishing that she wouldn't gush like that in front of everyone. "Well I'm nineteen now; I should." He rolled his eyes as she hugged him again.

Melissa stepped forward and Jason knelt down, picking her up. "Missy, you remember Aunt Claire, don't you?" He knew she didn't, or at least not well. The fight between her husband and their dad had been two years ago.

But Missy reached out for their aunt to take her and Jason let her. "Where's Uncle Dan?" he asked, biting at the corner of his thumbnail.

"Avoiding your father. He got here a few minutes ago."

"Great, let the explosion begin." He felt Kyle's soft touch on his arm and glanced at him, deciding that he could do worse than starting with Aunt Claire. "By the way, there's someone I want you to meet. This is Kyle Meeks and his parents, Michael and Anna. They've been letting Missy and me stay with them. Um, this is my mom's sister, Claire," he added for Kyle's parents.

"It's nice to meet you," Kyle said, offering his hand since he was closest.

Jason held his breath as his aunt eyed his boyfriend for a long moment. Did she already figure that he and Kyle were more than friends? Was she going to freak out?

But finally she put Melissa down then shook his hand. "Maria told me a lot about you," she said, "it's nice to meet you."

He felt relief settle over him as she cordially turned to Kyle's parents. He glanced at his boyfriend and Kyle was smiling at him, apparently relieved himself.

More people came up, offering him and Missy condolences that he accepted with mostly tight smiles and nods. A lot of them were friends of his mother's that he hadn't really seen since his public coming out. Even though no one was being _rude_, they were definitely eyeing him and Kyle, who hadn't strayed far from his side.

Kyle never ceased to amaze him. Despite being rather shy and definitely out of his element, he was quiet and polite to the people who took the time to talk to him. Though neither of them came right out and explained who Kyle was, he was sure that most of the people had guessed within a few seconds. Still, no one had started making a fuss yet. It probably helped that Melissa had walked up to Kyle and demanded to be picked up after a long enough procession of adults that she didn't know had talked to her.

But unlike in high school where no one had challenged him over his sexuality or his relationship, inevitably someone walked up to him, expression tight. And, because fate hated him, it was his Uncle Ramiro.

Jason had expected this; they hadn't met face-to-face since Christmas before he came out, after all. "Hello, Uncle," he said calmly, "I'm glad you could make it." Which he wasn't, but… you know, their support would help when he went head-on against his father.

"Hmph! I'm just here to support your father! I'm sure **you** don't care how humiliating it is for his faggot son to be flaunting his perversion in front of everyone! Is this the kind of respect you show your mother?"

He pressed his lips together tight and could feel Kyle tense and ready to stand by him. But he tried to keep his temper. "Ma loved me no matter who I was sleeping with. She also adored my boyfriend. So what 'kind of respect' do you mean?"

Uncle Ramiro looked ready to have a go at him but Jason just turned away. Any other time, he would have jumped at the chance to have it out with a man who was so thoroughly intertwined with his father in his mind, but this wasn't the time or place for it.

"At least your sister is going to be where she belongs."

"She has been," Jason said firmly. "But I'm sure she will be again soon. That man can't take care of himself, let alone a child."

"You little-!"

"Not here." Jason sighed with relief when he heard Father Paul's stern tone. "Everyone should sit down."

His uncle glared but turned and stormed off.

"Thanks," Jason muttered, "I really didn't want to get into it with him in front of everyone." He extended his hand and the priest shook it gently. He was surprised; he had expected some resentment either for doing something completely against what the Church believed or for not having been around in over a year.

"I imagine not." He turned and smoothed down Melissa's hair. "I went ahead and set aside two benches at the front so that you would not have to sit with your father if you choose not to."

"It's appreciated," he said, wondering if the man was going to say anything about Kyle's presence.

Thankfully the man just nodded and turned to go back into the church, satisfied that he had kept a fight from starting up on the front steps. Jason waited until he was gone and breathed a sigh of relief. "That could have gone so bad," he muttered.

"Looks like he's willing to ignore if he won't support," Kyle said, offering him a small smile. "Let's go inside."

Jason managed to stay strong through the entire service, even though he felt himself turn as pale as a ghost several times as the realization kept hitting him over and over that his mother was in that polished wooden casket. Thank God it wasn't open; he couldn't even imagine dealing with seeing his mother that way.

Throughout the entire thing, he only managed to keep from biting his nails by gripping Kyle's hand so tight that he was amazed he hadn't broken his boyfriend's skinny fingers. Melissa had started crying after a few short seconds and he had put an arm around her shoulders, holding her against his side.

Aunt Claire had sat down on the other side of Missy and smiled a sad little smile when the girl started to cry. Jason decided that he should catch her afterwards and get her advice on his plans to go against his old man.

When it had come time to take communion, Jason had whispered "stand, but stay here" in Kyle's ear before taking his sister up front. His father was standing next to them and his lip curled back but he didn't say anything. Jason hated knowing that Melissa would be leaving with the bastard.

After the funeral, Jason had to go with his sister, aunt, and father to the reading of his mother's will. Kyle's family waited patiently for him in the church, and Jason was relieved. He would need them after this.

He sat down, with Melissa in his lap, and had to listen to the lawyer – some guy he didn't even know, which made no since sense they worked for the same legal firm – read a will that sounded at the least two years old. Hell, it still had him down as a minor! Could that thing possibly have that much weight?

Most everything had been left to his father, and Jason had to close his eyes tight so he wouldn't have to watch the smug bastard smirk, especially when it listed him as Melissa's legal guardian. How could his mom have been that careless? As for him, he got a chunk of money and a few things of her father's.

He felt horrible being angry with his Ma, but she had put him in one of the worst situations he'd been in yet. Even what he got wasn't much; he guessed that his mom had trusted his dad to take care of him and Missy financially? Big mistake.

By the time everything had been said and done, he just wanted to go back to Kyle's house and sleep for a week. He had Missy in his arms, her head resting heavily on his shoulder. A few more people came up to talk and Jason tried to be polite even though he was emotionally exhausted from how fast everything was happening.

A few people, thankfully, had gone ahead and showed their support for him. The people that worked at the law office especially were nice to him because he saw them when he was at work himself. It made it easier to take the glares sent his way, and even those had dropped off throughout the service when they saw that he hadn't worn a dress or anything with rainbows on it. Or that he wasn't going to become hysterical and make a scene. Which anyone who knew him should have known he wasn't going to do anyway.

And the people who had taken the time to talk to Kyle and his family seemed to like them. Even though throughout the whole thing Kyle hadn't strayed far from his side, he was always soft-spoken and respectful – Jason felt like someone would have to hate _all_ gay people to hate Kyle.

His father walked up when people started leaving, sneering as he passed the Meeks family. "Melissa, come on!" he snapped, reaching out to take the girl from where she was snuggled against him.

"No!" she shouted, "wanna stay with Jay!"

Jason sighed and made her move back a little so he could look in her eyes. "You've got to go with him, Missy. Don't make a fuss." He leaned forward and gave her a kiss on the cheek, hoping that she would be okay the next time he saw her. "I promise I'll see you soon."

"Like hell you will," his father barked, grabbing Melissa and setting her on the ground before gripping her wrist. He glared at Jason coldly… the way one would look at a dead bug. Under that look, he almost felt like one. "Get your shit out of the house by the end of the week or I'm throwing all of it away." He jerked Melissa's arm as he turned around. "We're going!"

"Bye," she said sadly as she was pulled away.

Aunt Claire frowned after him. "I hate that man," she muttered.

"You and me both."

When they got back to the Meeks' house, Jason went straight upstairs and started to take off the stiff formal-wear, ignoring Kyle.

Delicate fingers grabbed his wrist and honey-colored eyes gazed at him worriedly. "Jason? Talk to me," he begged.

He sighed but slid an arm around Kyle's skinny waist. "I'm worried about Melissa," he confessed. "What if my dad hurts her?"

Kyle sighed and leaned against his chest. "I'm worried too. … I liked meeting your aunt, though; she was really nice."

"Yeah, she's great. I wish she would have come around more often, but I can definitely understand someone not wanting to be around my dad." He tossed his jacket over the back of Kyle's desk chair and sat down on the bed, putting his head in his hands.

Kyle sat down next to him making the bed dip and took one of his hands, leaning against his shoulder. He knew Kyle wanted to talk, but he wasn't sure how to put words to the mixed up thoughts in his head. Too much was happening all at once and he was feeling dizzy. Everything had turned into a complicated knot. He remembered something Kyle had said a while ago (why he had even brought it up, he couldn't recall) about the Gordian Knot. Apparently it had been unbelievably complicated; there was no beginning or end and it couldn't be untied. That was kind of how his head felt.

He lay down against the pillows and closed his eyes, wanting to go to sleep, but Kyle started chiding him right away. "Jason, you can't fall asleep like that! You'll mess up your clothes." He didn't help or hinder when Kyle started stripping him.

But when he felt soft lips brush against his neck, he shook his head. "I'm not in the mood," he admitted, which was _extremely_ rare for him.

Kyle pulled back and when Jason opened his eyes, his boyfriend looked surprised, too. But then Kyle nodded and finished getting his clothes off before standing up and disappearing from on top of Jason's body. But he could still hear him in the room.

"I'm sorry," he muttered, "I just don't feel that great. I'm starting to get a headache."

"You don't owe me any apology; I should have known better. Do you want me to get you some Aspirin or something?"

"No. Just lay down with me."

"I suppose a before-dinner nap couldn't hurt," Kyle agreed and Jason heard more clothes rustling before Kyle lay down next to him and grabbed the quilt from the end of the bed, pulling it over them.

He sighed, glad to be somewhere comfortable and warm. When Kyle snuggled against his chest, it grew even more-so. Jason realized just how lucky he was to have him.


	9. Kyle III

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ I want to e-mail Alex Sanchez and ask him about his feelings on fanfiction for an article I'm writing for a little website thing, but I'm hesitating to actually do it. Why? Because if he says that he doesn't like fanfiction and wants the people writing it to stop, I'll have no choice but to take this story down. I respect him way too much to go against his wishes. I just really hope that it doesn't come to that.

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CHAPTER EIGHT - Kyle

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Kyle blinked his honey-colored eyes open and groped for his watch where he'd left it on the bedside table before his whole family had left for Mrs. Carrillo's funeral. He brought it closer, regretting falling asleep with his contacts in, and saw that it was about four-thirty. He sighed and put it back down, snuggling further into the warmth of Jason's body.

He wished that he could do something for Jason. He knew that his boyfriend was in mental pain but he had no idea how to relieve it. He had hoped that making love would help – it tended to – but Jason had turned him away. Kyle wasn't upset in the slightest but he longed to help Jason somehow.

He nuzzled Jason's strong chest and breathed in the wonderful, familiar scent of his cologne. He was surprised when he felt Jason's hand brush against his back; he'd thought the other was dead asleep.

"Hey," he murmured, kissing his shoulder softly. "Looks like we both woke up about half-an-hour before we needed to."

"Nah. Been awake for about fifteen minutes," Jason responded, voice still rough with sleep. "Just didn't want to bother you."

Kyle shook his head. Every now and then, Jason could be incredibly sweet. "I wouldn't have minded. Are you feeling any better?" he asked hopefully.

"Mm, some. I guess a nap let my brain rest for a while."

He smiled, absently drawing circles on Jason's skin. "That's good."

"Hey… I'm really sorry about earlier," Jason told him, and he tipped Kyle's chin up so that they were looking right at each other.

Kyle loved Jason's eyes. "You don't have anything to apologize for," he assured. "You were upset and tired."

"Well… I'm not anymore. If you still want to, that is," Jason said awkwardly. Kyle grinned and gave him a soft kiss on the lips, wondering if that was really a good idea. But they did have time, and his mother had said – sort of – that it was okay as long as they were in his room.

"Sounds good to me," he agreed, but when Jason moved to sit up, Kyle rested a hand on his chest. "Can we try something a little different?" he asked. There had been something he'd wanted to do, but he hadn't exactly brought it up with Jason yet.

Jason, for his part, looked wary. "Different?" He didn't exactly sound enthusiastic.

Kyle understood why. That was something they _definitely_ hadn't done. That was one of Jason's things; he had to be unquestionably the man in the relationship. Kyle could do the so-called 'feminine' things – making snacks, obsessively organizing, and tidying up – that his boyfriend would _never_ do and Jason also seemed to expect Kyle to… well, to be the 'girl' in bed. Kyle preferred it that way, too; he had no intention of changing it.

"No, no, no! Not that different. Just, um-," he blushed as red as ketchup, "just, um, a different position."

Jason nodded, seeming to accept that a bit better. "Alright. So… what do I need to do?" He actually looked a bit amused.

"Just lay there for a minute." Kyle dug into his nightstand, glad for an excuse to look away from his smirking boyfriend. At least it wasn't as awkward as the night when he – more embarrassed than he had ever been – whispered "if you want to… you can" when they had been in almost the perfect position to take things a step further.

When they were both ready, Kyle put his knees on either side of Jason's waist and lowered himself, eyes clenching shut for a minute. He could tell that his boyfriend was holding his breath and he moved further until he could feel Jason's hips against the curve of his ass. "Is this… okay?" he asked. It definitely felt different for him but it wasn't bad.

"It's fine." Jason took one of his hands and Kyle felt him squeeze gently.

He relaxed and started to move on top of him, almost losing his balance at first. But in his defense, it was hard to concentrate in that situation! Kyle just started settling into something that resembled a rhythm when Jason looked up at him with an evil smirk and bucked his hips, nearly sending Kyle into orbit.

"J-Jason!" Strong hands grabbed his hips and he was forced to move in the way his boyfriend wanted, but that was fine by him. He leaned forward and kissed Jason warmly. It was a different experience, being on top and having to do most of the work, but in a way it was kind of sexy.

He resisted against the tugging of Jason's hands for a second and was thrilled with the growl of frustration that met his ears. He wasn't going to do anything ridiculous like make his boyfriend beg, but he kind of liked teasing him.

"Oh, you think that's funny?" Jason demanded roughly with good humor and Kyle laughed, waiting to see what Jason would do in response. He wasn't disappointed in the least when Jason started bucking his hips up, making Kyle bounce slightly. He groaned and let out other tiny sounds every time his butt landed against Jason's hips and he realized that he was torturing himself at least as much if not more than his boyfriend.

They moved together carefully and Kyle grabbed onto the sheets as the heat between them started to peak. He clenched his jaw tight to keep from screaming and alerting his parents to what they were doing, but it was Jason who just barely kept quiet, saved only by a last-second kiss.

When they were done, Kyle stayed on top of Jason, smiling down at him. Jason certainly looked more relaxed! "Was that… okay?"

"Ask me again when my brain starts functioning," Jason answered, absently stroking Kyle's leg.

"That's definitely not something I'd want to do on carpet. My knees hurt," he admitted as he slowly moved off of his boyfriend. Jason let out a tiny complaint and grabbed his wrist, so he settled down against his side, not about to stray too far anyway.

"I feel like a sticky mess," Jason complained in turn.

"Then maybe we'll just do this every now and then. But at least it didn't require you doing all of the work."

Jason snorted. "If you feel like you're not as much of a participant as I am the other way, then I'm failing miserably."

Kyle laughed too, knowing what Jason meant. "Well, okay, you've got me there. But you know what I meant!"

"Yeah, yeah. Let me up so I can get a washcloth or something," he said, and Kyle jerked when Jason smacked him gently on the thigh. He scooted back and watched with intense eyes as his naked boyfriend moved around the room throwing away the used condom and hunting down a pair of pants before disappearing down the hall.

After a minute, he dug back into his bedside-table, looking for his contacts case. He was glad he had gotten the kind that it was perfectly fine to sleep in, but he always felt weird doing it. He put them in the case with a few drops of solution then got out his glasses, popping them on and making sure the arms weren't flattening his hair funny.

Jason came back into the room and threw a moist rag at him. "Your mom called up the stairs when she heard me that dinner's ready."

Kyle quickly cleaned himself off and changed into a T-shirt and a pair of sweatpants since he wouldn't be going anywhere later. He ran a hand through his hair to make sure it wasn't messed up then shrugged. "We're getting this timing thing down pretty well." Jason just snorted a laugh.

Dinner was relatively calm, especially because Melissa wasn't chattering nonstop at the table or listening to cartoons too loud in the next room. Kyle sighed.

"What is it, son?" his father demanded.

"I'm just… worried about Melissa," he admitted. Jason immediately turned to look at him like this surprised him – Kyle couldn't imagine why. "When he took her, he was acting like she was such a burden… even though she's his own daughter." He glanced at his boyfriend. "He obviously doesn't really want to be a parent, so why doesn't he just let Missy stay with you?"

Jason shrugged and glared at his plate. "Sometimes I think he does crap like this just to spite me. But I doubt I actually matter enough to him that he'd go out of his way. It's probably more about appearances. He wouldn't want _anyone_ to think he wasn't taking care of his family."

"Does nobody know what that man's really like?" his mom asked, frowning as she passed the dish of peas to his father.

"Some people do. They're the ones I'm counting on to help me. But in reality I'm not going to win."

"You don't know that," Kyle insisted, not wanting Jason to be so pessimistic.

"I've been thinking about it and I wonder if I should really even fight him. How could I possibly take care of Missy if I _did_ get custody of her? My mom left me jack; I'll eat up every last penny of it finishing a bachelor's degree. If I decide to stop going after next year-."

"Jason, no!" Kyle protested immediately. "There's no way to make a decent living anymore with just a two-year, and most people who take a 'break' never go back."

"I know that," Jason snapped, but Kyle knew that Jason wasn't mad at him. He was mad at the situation he had been put in.

"What about student loans?" his dad asked.

"No co-sign, the interest rates would have me paying it off until I retire. Imagine if I do get custody of Missy; I wouldn't be able to do the whole campus-housing thing."

"But think about what might happen if you don't get custody of her," Kyle asked, pushing his plate away appetite ruined.

"I don't want to," Jason admitted. He sounded miserable.

Kyle tried to think of a solution. He knew that leaving Melissa with Jason's dad was absolutely out of the question. She would be better off in foster care than living with that man, but he doubted anyone else would see that. Still, Jason was right. On his own, he would never be able to take good care of Missy; there were just too many things working against him.

Jason sighed before he finished thinking. "Whatever. I didn't mean to ruin a good meal." He picked his fork back up, a sign that he was done talking.

Kyle wished that he could make his brain switch topics as easily as Jason did. It was a gift his boyfriend underappreciated. "Jason? No matter what happens, I'm going to be here for you. I'm not going to make you go through all of this alone. If you do get custody of Melissa, I'll even babysit any time I'm home."

Even though Jason's immediate response was to roll his dark eyes, Kyle could sense that he appreciated him saying it. That's why he didn't understand it when his parents both frowned.

After dinner, Kyle went into the kitchen and helped his mom bring out bowls of ice cream and cookies. His dad watched him as he moved back and forth, giving Jason his dessert and a spoon before sitting down to eat his own. His parents had never really seen the way he took care of Jason, but in Kyle thought that he wouldn't make a half-bad housewife if only he liked soap operas.

"I'm going to go take a shower," Jason said finally, and Kyle knew that he was going to take a swing through the kitchen to drop his dish off first.

He put a hand out to stop him. "You go relax. I'll take care of it," he assured.

Jason eyed him for a second before shrugging and disappearing up the stairs. Kyle stacked his bowl in Jason's and took them both to the kitchen, filling them with water so the ice cream wouldn't dry.

"Kyle, come back in here for a minute," his dad called as his mom brushed in with the other dishes.

He frowned, recognizing his father's tone of voice. It sounded like he was about to get in trouble and he couldn't really imagine what for. Unless his dad was actually going to crawl up his butt for babying Jason a little bit.

He went back into the dining room and sat down, not giving his dad a chance to even _think_ of doing a 'family council' for whatever he wanted to talk about. "What is it?" he asked, trying to keep from getting defensive.

"You're not going to like hearing me say this, so I'll just come right out with it. Don't you think you're being rash, telling Jason that you'll stay with him no matter what?"

It was the first time his dad had spoken so bluntly about what he had with Jason, and Kyle didn't understand what he meant at all. "Of course not. I mean… I know that anything's _possible_ but I can't see anything that would make me not stay with Jason." Even if Jason's eyes started wandering again, Kyle knew they could handle it with minimal arguing this time.

His mom sat down in the other chair and set in to keep the peace. "If Jason does get custody of his sister, a lot of things are going to be different for him. He's going to have a lot of responsibilities and between school, work, and his sister, he's not going to have a lot of time for… well, for a relationship."

"I know that," Kyle insisted. "It's not like I demand that Jason pay attention to me twenty-four-seven. Part of what I admire most about him is how good of a big brother he is to Missy." He showed the same strength of character taking care of a girl who wasn't his responsibility as he did when faced with every other challenge. Kyle only wished he could be as strong as Jason.

"You don't think things will change when a child is involved?" his dad challenged.

"I didn't say that." God, he wished they wouldn't gang up on him. "I know that I'll take a back-seat to Melissa, but I'm okay with it." He sighed but finally decided to confess something he had never said before. "I waited four years for Jason to even look at me. I'm not letting go of him now.

"Besides, if Jason's going to be staying here it's not like it will be hard for us to get _some_ time together. And when I'm home from school, I can help Jason take care of Missy. I watched after her the other day and it wasn't that hard."

His mother sighed and reached for his hand. "Taking care of Jason's sister isn't your responsibility, Kyle."

He jerked away and glared at her. "It's not supposed to be his either, but here we are. Jason can't do everything by himself and he shouldn't have to. If I can help him, I will."

"Kyle, sometimes you have to think about yourself. I know that Jason's important to you, but-."

"The last time you said that, you were telling me _not_ to think about myself," he protested, remembering she had said that exact thing when trying to talk him into going to Princeton. "I'm going to stay with Jason and I'm going to help him with Missy whenever I can and I don't want to argue about it."

"Don't talk to us that way," his dad said shortly.

"Why not? I'm an adult, too; I can make my own decisions, especially about my private life." He stood up and marched upstairs, not caring if his parents had anything else to say.

Jason was sitting on the bed shirtless, drying his thick hair with a towel. "Hey. … Wow, you look about ready to murder someone."

Kyle sat down next to Jason and tucked his head under his boyfriend's chin, not wanting to talk about it. Hadn't his parents learned by now that Jason was most important to him?


	10. Nelson III

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ Alex is amazing. He says that he doesn't care if we write fanfiction! We now have free reign to torment-I-mean-love these three sexy beasties to death. On a side note, I hurt my shoulder in, like, the last damn PE class I have this entire semester, so my typing is a little bit slow. Hopefully everything will go okay and I'll still have everything out in my usual three to four days.

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CHAPTER NINE - Nelson

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Nelson missed getting the key into the lock three times before he finally managed to scrape metal against metal, letting himself into the apartment. He dropped his keys on the small table with a potted plant on it and collapsed over the back of the couch, leaving his butt up in the air and not caring. He hated his job. He _hated_ his job!

And it didn't help that he had come to the conclusion at some point between helping the crazy old man ("you have to buy the extra equipment if you want it to do that?" "Why? Doesn't it come with that?" "No… you have to buy the extra equipment." "Are you sure?") and restocking emergency radios that he had to sit Manny down and have a serious talk with him.

It would be one of the most awkward conversations of his life, rivaled only by telling his mother he'd had unsafe sex with a stranger and telling Jeremy that they should totally break up. Both of those conversations had turned out okay in the end… which meant he was due for a total freak-out-melt-down any time now. What were his realistic chances of being 3-for-3?

Still, he knew that he had to tell him. If for no other reason than because Kyle and Ernesto would both ride his ass (in the not-fun way) until he did. He wondered if he should plan this out – make dinner, give Manny a backrub, rent a movie – but dismissed the idea. If he was _too_ sweet, it would just let Manny know he was up to something. It was best to just tell him point-blank.

He sighed. "Manny!" he shouted, "Ma~anny? Where are you?" he called, deciding to do this before he lost his nerve.

"I'm in the bedroom," Manny answered.

Nelson perked up for a moment; _that_ might be a good way to get Manny in a good mood for his horrible news! He pranced back into the bedroom – if he'd been a cat, his tail would have been in the air like a flag.

He bounced into the bedroom, his mind on having a little fun, and came almost nose-to-nose with one of the few people on that half of the fucking continent that knew his secret.

David smirked and stepped back, looking evilly amused.

He turned as pale as a ghost and whipped around to see Manny sitting in front of a canvas, mixing oils. "M-Manny?" he squeaked, wanting to know why in the _hell_ David was in their room!

"Hey, you remember David from the other night at the club, right?" Manny said, shrugging nonchalantly. "He's helping me work on one of my art projects. I totally owe him one." He grinned. "But then again, sense I let him dance with my sexy boyfriend, so now we're even."

"I th-thought you said you were a pre-med," Nelson accused, taking a step closer to Manny – and further away from David.

"Well, I am, but even a pre-med student can model," David replied, eyebrows raising in amusement. Nelson could just see the thoughts behind those pretty green eyes – _yeah, you don't like me here, do you? But what are you going to do about it?_

He walked over to Manny and grabbed the sleeve of his shirt, not caring if he seemed like a little kid when he started whining "but _I'm_ your model!"

Manny laughed but eyed him a little oddly. "What's up with you, Nelson? You're being totally rude." He put his hands on Nelson's waist and Nelson almost fell when Manny pushed him to sit down on the bed. "Don't worry, you'll always be my favorite model, but since David has a different body-type, I thought it would be a good idea to see if I can draw someone other than you, just this once."

Nelson wanted to throw a fit. He wanted to scream that he didn't want David in his room, in his apartment, hell, anywhere around him _or_ Manny! But how could he justify it? Yes, he had wanted to tell Manny what had happened, but not with David in the next room!

"But I'm exhausted," Nelson complained, trying to think of a valid reason for Manny to make David _leave_. "I want to go to bed."

"Come on, Nelson; can't you just crash on the couch for a while? I just finished setting everything up."

He pressed his lips together and huffed. David was smirking at him! The arrogant dick!

Turning sharply, he went back out to the living room then through to the kitchen. He poured a glass of coke and chugged it, fuming pissed. He almost wondered if he shouldn't be in that room every second to make sure that David didn't try to do something with Manny.

The only reason he didn't was because Manny was too good of a person to cheat on him….

He picked up the phone, wanting desperately to talk to Kyle, but he couldn't make himself call. It was almost two in the morning in Virginia, and he remembered Kyle mentioning the funeral for Jason's mom was that day. He just couldn't do it.

He put the phone back down and went into the living room. He threw himself onto the couch and beat the shit out of one of the pillows for a minute, only keeping himself from screaming by remembering that he wasn't alone in the apartment. He threw the poor abused pillow onto the wood floors and it slid against the wall.

He rested his head on his folded arms, perking his ears to try and eavesdrop on what was happening in their room. He could hear Manny and David talking, and occasionally laughter trickled down the hallway. He wished that the two were arguing, but it actually sounded like they were getting along great. The idea of Manny and David becoming close friends made him feel sick to his stomach; it was bad enough when they were just 'college buddies'; David must have had no soul to befriend Manny after what had happened.

"Manny!" he shouted suddenly, "Where's Nes?"

"Out with Angela! I swear, he's so in love with her," Manny called back.

Nelson groaned and kicked his feet up on the arm of the couch behind him. If Ernesto had been there, he would have felt so much better! At least he would have had someone to tell him it would be okay.

VVVVVVVVVVV

When he woke up, he stretched out, touching the top of his head to one arm of the couch and pushing his toes against the other. He _hated_ sleeping on that couch! Hated it! How dare Manny banish him there so he could be all friendly-like with David.

He stood up and ran a hand through his apple-red hair. Maybe he should change it. He was thinking of going blue again, but maybe a softer blue than when he'd gone flame with Jeremy.

It was pitch black in the living room, but he didn't bother turning on the lamp. At that time of night, he would feel perfectly justified kicking David's ass out!

He stumbled back to the room, hearing Ernesto's soft snoring which meant that he had managed to come home and sneak past Nelson without waking him up, and slipped inside of his and Manny's bedroom.

Nelson had no idea what time it was, but David was gone and the light was off which meant that Nelson didn't have to go psycho and chase him out with a chair brandished over his head. He stripped down to nothing and crawled under the covers. He slid his arms around Manny and nuzzled against his shoulder.

All of a sudden, he wanted to shake him awake and tell him everything! David was probably having a blast palling it up with Manny knowing that he'd landed his lover; it was probably a better thrill than knowing he'd done it with Manny's ex.

"Manny," he whispered, biting at his shoulder gently with his teeth. "Manny, wake up for me for a minute."

His lover stirred and turned over, and Nelson felt his soft, sleepy breaths against his shoulder. "Hmm, hey Nelson."

"You left me on the couch!" he pouted, poking Manny's side.

"Sorry. It was pretty late when David took off and I didn't want to wake you up since you were dead to the world."

"That's what I wanted to talk about. Why does he have to come over? I liked being your one and only sexy model."

Manny laughed and stroked his hip. "I told you, I want to practice on someone with a different body-type. Skinny and kinda little is really, really sexy, but I want to get a bit of practice drawing harsher lines and more muscles."

"I think that was an insult," Nelson huffed; he still couldn't for the life of him get musculature on his small body. "Besides, if you were going to draw one of your friends… Skye's bigger than David!"

Manny paused for a second then burst into hysterical laughter. "I just had a pervy thought," he said, sing-song like a little kid.

"I'm being serious!"

"I know. But Skye's always busy, I would never be able to get him to sit still long enough to model for me. I would have to tie him up and – while that could be fun – it's not conducive to living long."

Nelson sighed, wishing that Manny was taking him more seriously for once.

"Nelly, what's wrong? You and David got along great the other night but now you're being really… really rude to him."

"I just don't like him," Nelson admitted. "We got along at first, yeah, but later on he did something that… I just don't want him around."

"What did he do?" Manny asked, reaching up to stroke his red hair.

"… He just said something I didn't like," Nelson lied.

Manny sat up and leaned against the headboard and even though Nelson couldn't see him that well, he knew Manny was staring down at him. "I'm sure whatever it was, David didn't mean it. He can shoot his mouth off, but he's a great guy. And he seems to really like you; I think you hurt his feelings by being so short with him."

Nelson knew that was totally bullshit, but David was a damn good actor. "I just wish you wouldn't bring him around here." He didn't want Manny around David _at all_, actually, but he couldn't just come right out and say that. How horrible would it be for Manny to think that Nelson was trying to control who he was and wasn't allowed to be friends with?

"Nelson, come on, that's not fair!" Manny snapped. "You don't have to like all of my friends, but if I want to have David over it shouldn't be a big deal. I'm sure if you just tell him that he said something that you didn't like, he would apologize."

He scowled up at Manny and turned to face the wall, steaming. Somehow, he didn't get the feeling that David regretted using and humiliating him at all.


	11. Jason IV

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ I'm noticing that my chapters are getting shorter and shorter. That last one with Nelson was tiny – it was even shorter than the prologue! It's a lot easier to write chapters for Jason and Kyle. Not only do I like them better, but there's twice as much plot going on with those two. Jason's chapters usually seem to turn out longest… oh well. Hope you guys don't mind.

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CHAPTER TEN - Jason

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Jason waved goodbye to the secretary at the desk on his way out the door from a too-long day of work. He hated the way everyone looked at him pityingly just because his family's dirty laundry had been aired in a rather humiliating way over the past several days. At least his boss was nice about leaving him alone; otherwise, he would have gone crazy. He let the door slam shut behind him as he walked down the slightly steaming early-summer sidewalk.

He wished Kyle didn't have to work that night – his evening shifts had been helpful when he'd been helping watch Missy, but now it was that much less time they got to see each other. It was also more awkward around Kyle's house without him there, especially after Jason had found out what Kyle's last conversation with his parents had entailed.

He doubted a single word of it was personal. Michael and Anna really did treat him well for all that he was their son's boyfriend, and they were definitely doing more than he had ever expected they would to help him. Still, it wasn't overly helpful to think about their fatalistic attitude towards his relationship with Kyle.

"Jason?"

He jerked to attention and whipped around. But when he saw the person looked at him hopefully, a grin split his face in two. "Hey, Corey," he greeted, shoving out a hand and clasping his friend's palm tight.

"I thought that was you! I just didn't want to grab some random stranger and be like 'hey buddy'."

Jason laughed, shaking his head. "Wha's up? I've been meaning to get a hold of you now that you're home for break, but things have been crazy lately."

"I heard, man. I'm so sorry to hear about what happened to your mom."

Jason brought his hand up and nodded absently, biting at his thumbnail. He should have known somebody would notice after his aunt had it put in the obituaries. "Yeah… things have been rough."

"Hey, are you in a hurry?" Corey asked him, "'cause if not, I bet I can get Cindy, Deb, and Lance to meet us somewhere to play catch-up. I know the girls would chew my friggin' head off if I didn't try to talk you into it."

He chuckled, able to imagine it. "I guess I'm not in any big hurry. Just got off work."

Corey smirked. "If I know you, that's Jason-speak for 'feed me'."

He slung an arm over Corey's shoulders, thrilled to have a chance to catch up with his best friend. "Something like that."

Not an hour later, Cindy, Debra, and Lance had met the two of them at a little café place that served decent food and wasn't all flowery and girly. Debra ran up to him and wrapped her arms so tight around him that he was afraid for a second that she might choke him to death. He nuzzled into her soft blonde hair and breathed in the scent of roses before letting her go – no need to get Lance's hackles up.

They all sat down and, once they'd ordered, Debra put her hand over his. "I'm so sorry about your mother."

He sighed. "I just… wasn't prepared for it, you know? Things have gotten so damn crazy."

"Like how?" Cindy asked in her ever-to-the-point way.

He frowned and moved to bite his nails before putting his hand back down so Debra wouldn't climb up his ass about it. "Well… you guys know my dad moved out, and Ma told me that she was working 'slowly but surely' on the divorce papers… there's no sign of them. To be honest," he confessed, "I never really should have expected there to be any. And her will was ancient. Like years and years old."

"Damn. Bet you and your old man are having it out if that's the case," Corey commented carefully.

"You don't even know the half of it. That bastard has Missy." He heard Corey hiss and he crossed his arms over his chest, trying to decide exactly what to say. Out of the four of them, only Corey knew exactly how bad things were at home. But talking about that with them would be a hell of a lot easier than some of the things he'd done. "My dad… well, you guys know we never got along."

"You were always staying at Corey's place," Cindy commented, "but neither of you ever said much about it. Did you two fight or something?"

"Fight?" Jason repeated. "I guess you could call it that. We were always shouting at each other. It was like he didn't miss a chance to cut me down and call me names. I kept staying at Corey's whenever my dad was drinking – which was just about always – because it was always worse then. But at least things stopped being… physical once I got big enough to fight the bastard back."

"Physical like you mean he would hit you?" Cindy demanded, looking horrified.

"… Sometimes."

Debra let out a sound that was somewhere between a shout and a sob. "Why didn't you ever tell me?!" she demanded, "I never had any idea that something like that was going on."

"I didn't want you to. I swore Corey to silence and would disappear for a few days if his parents started asking questions." Now he wished he hadn't, of course. He'd been too damn proud as a kid.

"But what's going to happen to Missy if she's with him?" Debra asked, looking like she was caught between cooing and saying 'you poor baby!' and biting his head off for keeping it a secret.

"I don't know. But I'm sure as hell not letting him take her without a fight. I've already talked to Coach," he added, glancing at Corey. "I'm going to file a child abuse case against my dad. It might help me get custody of Missy."

Corey breathed in sharply through his teeth. "Damn, with you around things are never boring, are they?"

"I was especially glad to run into you because I'm going to need more than just Coach's word. … How would your parents feel about helping me out?"

"Can't say. I imagine they'd do it, though. You were pretty much a permanent fixture at my place, so I'm sure they'll help you out."

Jason sighed, relieved. "That's good…. I'm really worried that this is going to blow up in my face."

Debra leaned over and gave him a gentle hug. "You'll be alright." He wrapped his arms around her in return; she still gave great hugs.

"So if you don't get along with your father, where are you going to live?" Lance asked quietly.

He blushed and picked at the bed of his thumbnail. They were absolutely going to take the hell out of him when he told them, especially the girls who treated his life like it was a soap opera. "Kyle's parents are letting me move in since my dad kicked me out."

"O~oh!" Cindy squealed, "so you're living with your boyfriend? Teehee, what do you two do when his parents aren't looking?"

"Could you keep it down!?" he demanded, "I don't think they heard you in Thailand!"

Debra was bent nearly in half, shaking with laughter. "Wow, Cindy, your bluntness never fails!"

"Well, I wanna know!" she huffed, crossing her arms over her chest and pouting at them.

Jason nudged Corey in the shoulder. "If she's that desperate for details about _other_ people's sex-lives, she must not be getting something she wants from you."

Cindy opened her mouth to scream a response back to him, but Corey clamped his hand over her mouth, ears as red as a tomato.

Debra giggled and leaned back, resting against Lance's shoulder. Jason felt a tiny twinge of jealousy, but he figured he always would. It was odd seeing his first love with someone else, but both of them were happy. Lance was quiet, but he was a good guy for Deb.

"So," she asked finally, "you and Kyle are still doing alright?"

He nodded awkwardly. "Yeah… I don't know how I'd be getting through all of this without him. He's been a huge help." He stayed and talked with them for a long while, catching up and trading tales about classes, college drama, and gossip about their classmates that had gone to Tech with the four of them.

Both Debra and Cindy hugged him tight when it was time for them to leave, reminding him of just how small girls were. They both felt so fragile. When they moved back, Jason smelled like their flowery perfume and knew that he would have to explain fast or Kyle would be throwing a fit and banishing him to the backyard.

Lance shook his hand and slipped away with the girls, but Corey gripped him by the shoulder and leaned against him. "I'll talk to my parents and give you a call," he promised, "so don't keep disappearing into the woodwork on us."

"Promise." He waved sadly as he watched them go. He sighed and walked back to Kyle's. Michael and Anna both seemed like they wanted to get onto him for staying out so long without letting them know where he was, but he was an adult; he wasn't going to let them treat him like a kid.

He went upstairs and threw himself onto Kyle's bed, lost in thought. He definitely missed Debra, Corey, and Cindy. They had always been fantastic friends. It was hard to accept that his life only occasionally brushed against theirs as opposed to flowing right along with it. Still, at least he had that much.

Kyle came home not too long after and sat down next to him, leaning over to give him a soft kiss.

"Hey," he whispered lazily, grinning up at him.

Kyle didn't smile back. He jerked up and looked at him, scandalized, and Jason cut in quickly. "I met up with Corey and the girls earlier and they both hugged me until my head almost popped off, that's why I smell like perfume."

Kyle eyed him for a minute. "Alright, I'll buy it, but if I find out you're lying, you're in trouble."

Jason smirked. "Don't worry, I value certain sexual organs far too much to get caught cheating on you that easily." He stroked his side gently. "I talked to Corey about getting his parents to help me file against my dad."

"And?" Kyle stroked his fingers over his chest absently, and Jason would have purred if he could; it felt good.

"And he said he could get them to help me." He shrugged. "Well… I guess I'll call the cops and Missy's social worker in the morning." He reached up and threaded his fingers through Kyle's fine hair, pulling him down for a long, deep kiss.

VVVVVVVVVV

A few days later, he called in work and took the day off so that he could talk to everyone who was going to end up involved in the tangled legal web he was about to wrap around both his and his father's ankles.

He sat at a table with Coach Cameron, Corey's parents, Michael and Anna Meeks, and Miss Kelley. "So let me understand," the social worker said softly, "you want to officially file for custody of your sister and make a case against your father?"

Jason nodded his head shortly. "Yes, Ma'am. I know how this is going to seem, but both have to be filed and there's no point in sitting down with everyone multiple times."

"… Alright. Now you said you wanted to file a case against your father but you were very vague on the details…."

He nibbled at a thumbnail thoughtfully. "I want to file charges against him for physical and verbal child abuse, and… would it be possible to file domestic disturbance charges for something that happened a little over a year ago?"

"I think it will depend on what you mean by 'disturbance'."

"Hmm. He and my mom got into a huge argument because he was gathering up his things to move out. I don't know what exactly got said, but he started yelling at her and throwing things; a lot of stuff got broken. My mom had to call the cops to take him out of the house."

Corey's mother looked sick to her stomach. She had thrown her arms around him tight when he sat down to talk with them about what exactly he was doing… and what he was going to need their help with. She had sobbed all over him about how she knew she shouldn't have let him go back to that house.

"The police should have a record of that, but you were right to mention it to me; usually, in cases like this we only look for domestic violence, but you should be able to get this admitted because of the nature of the disturbance."

He sighed, relieved. It was a step.

"Now as for the physical abuse, I have to ask, was it against you or your sister?"

"Mostly me," he confessed. "I never _saw_ him hit Ma and I assure you we wouldn't be having this conversation if I had **ever** seen him hit Missy." He would have killed his dad before letting him hurt his little sister.

"Accusations of child abuse are very serious and will have to be looked into deeply. To your knowledge, are there any hospital records that would indicate abuse, and in which hospital?"

Jason frowned and drummed his fingers against the table. "When I did go to the hospital, it was county. He would always tell me not to go to the school nurse or anything, but sometimes I did. I don't know if they really keep records, though."

"They do for four years past graduation," Coach Cameron told them all, "in case something happens in college or there's some other problem with the kid's medical records. They're all sealed, of course, but I think you can go in and request your own without much problem."

"That's actually pretty smart of the school to do," Kyle's father commented, seeming impressed.

Miss Kelley nodded, and Jason got the feeling that this wasn't the first time they would have to go through the school to get medical records. "Alright," she said, "now you've done well finding people to help you, but none of them ever actually saw the abuse take place?"

"No, ma'am. There are a few people who… would have seen, but since they're my dad's brother and sister-in-law…." He let his words trail off, knowing she would understand.

"Is there anyone else?"

He frowned but thought about it. Finally, he realized that there was, but it would be opening a can of worms that he really didn't want to get into. "The night that I came out… he took a couple of swings at me. He bruised up my chest and slammed me against the counter. Missy saw the whole thing."

The social worker seemed surprised at that and sat her pen down, looking straight at him. Jason didn't know why she all of a sudden seemed so shocked. "Even though he never hurt Melissa, she was aware of what was going on in the house?"

"Oh yeah. Whenever my father was shouting at Ma, Missy would always come into my room and curl up in my bed. I was the only one who would stand up to my dad, so I guess she felt safer in there."

"That's rather unusual. Normally, in households where the abuse is contained, the members of the house that weren't involved in the abuse were ignorant of it."

Jason pressed his lips together tightly. "I don't know why my dad did things the way he did."

"Well, because of the abuse charges your sister may have to go to a foster home until a decision is made."

His eyes went huge. "A foster home? Why can't Missy just come back with me?" he demanded.

"If she has to testify during the trial – and it looks like she's going to have to – then letting her live with either party would be seen as influencing her testimony."

"But couldn't she live with someone else?" he demanded, "like… my Aunt Claire? She's not going to be involved in the case, so why can't Melissa go live with her?"

"If she does, you realize that you're not going to be able to visit her."

His chest contracted like someone had hit him. They were actually going to tell him he couldn't see his sister?

"Also, I should point out that even if your father is found guilty of abuse, there's no guarantee that you'll win the custody case. If you're both found to be unfit parents, then she might be sent to live with another family member."

"I can take care of Missy," he argued, "I've been looking after her practically since the day she was born! Why would they not let me have her?"

"Because of your age and financial situation."

The meeting lasted for a few hours, and Jason started to develop a pounding headache as they had to go through the ins and outs of filing both of the cases, getting contact information for Coach Cameron and Corey's parents, and all of the other legal bullshit.

When it was finally over, Jason went outside and took a few long, deep breaths of fresh air. Corey's mom hugged him again, stroking his hair and for a minute she almost felt like his own mom. He had spent so much time letting them take care of him that she was like a second mother to him anyway.

"Jason, Corey told us not to bother offering you a place to stay, but are you sure you're okay?" she asked, stroking his cheek.

He nodded, managing a smile. "I'm great. I didn't get a chance to introduce you, but these are Michael and Anna Meeks. Um… well…." He shifted awkwardly, but then decided to come right out and say it. "I'm dating their son, Kyle."

Corey's mother blushed but was perfectly polite to Kyle's family, and Jason appreciated them even more for it. Coach Cameron introduced himself, too, and managed a tiny smile. "I met your boy once," he told the Meeks, "he was a nice kid."

Jason stepped back and watched the adults talk, glad that they were all getting along. He had one hell of a support net, but was it going to be enough to go to war with the demon from his childhood?


	12. Kyle IV

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ I swear to God, the universe fucking hates me. I just got over my hurt arm (hooray!) when I caught frickin' tonsillitis! Now I'm sitting here with my throat feeling like it's trying to claw its way out of my mouth, overdosing on cough-drops and this nasty-tasting pink crap that I'm supposed to squirt down the back of my throat that makes my lips numb.

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

CHAPTER ELEVEN - Kyle

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

Kyle sat at home by himself, waiting anxiously for Jason and his parents to get back from their meeting with the social worker. He wished he would have been allowed to go with them, but there was really no reason for him to be involved; at least, not until a judge or whoever was trying to decide if Jason would be able to take care of Melissa. _Then_ his help would be important.

He sighed and lay on the couch, flipping randomly through the TV channels, hoping to find something good but he doubted it would actually happen. Home Shopping Network, televangelist saying that people like him were going to Hell, real-life crime drama… boring.

He turned onto his back and hugged one of the pillows tight to his chest. He still hadn't talked to his parents – any more than the obligatory 'good morning', 'pass the potatoes' – since they had delivered their doom-and-gloom prophesy for his relationship with the only male he'd ever loved. He knew they wouldn't go back on their word to take care of Jason while he was away at school, but that didn't change the fact that they weren't exactly being supportive.

Kyle knew he was being a bit unfair; unsupportive parents would never be letting their son's boyfriend move in, especially when said son wasn't there. His parents just didn't understand that nothing – _nothing_ – would make him give Jason up.

When he heard the scrape of metal against metal, he tumbled sideways off of the couch and hurried to the door to greet them. "How did it go?" he asked hopefully, using his big ole puppy-eyes to his advantage.

Luckily, Jason managed a smile. "It was alright. It was good to see Corey's mom again. All of this is going to be a huge legal mess… but there's not much I can do about that."

Kyle touched his hand lightly, then gripped Jason's fingers and led him upstairs so they could talk. He sat down on the bed and Jason sat next to him, leaning against his shoulder. "How are you feeling?" he asked gently.

"Surprisingly alright," Jason told him. "Corey's parents were always really good to me."

"That's good." He reached up and stroked Jason's thick hair flat, liking how soft it felt under his fingers. "My parents didn't say anything to you, did they? I mean, we're not exactly speaking right now…."

"They didn't say anything about it to me," Jason replied. "I doubt they even know that we talked about it."

"They're still treating me like a kid," Kyle complained, feeling like that was the root of it. "Like I'm not mature enough to understand that I can't always be the center of attention. I feel like they're _never_ going to respect me."

"You know, Kyle, you really don't have a lot to complain about. At least you still have a mom and a dad who loves you."

Kyle sighed, wanting to snap back but knowing that it would just cause them to fight which was the last thing he wanted. "You're right. It's just hard to be calm when they act like I'm still seven-years-old or something."

Jason grinned. "Great, make me feel like a cradle-robber."

"Not funny!" He hit Jason's chest gently – definitely not enough to hurt him.

His boyfriend just chuckled at him. "_Most_ of the time, you're very mature. It's nice for me; imagine if I had to take care of you _and_ Missy!"

Kyle smiled and lay down on his shoulder. An idea was swirling around in his head, but wasn't it crazy? After a few dozen fights about it, was he really ready to start up all of the arguing again? The idea was nuts, totally bizarre! There was no way. Yet….

VVVVVVVVVV

Later that night, Kyle was downstairs watching television with his parents and Jason when he felt his boyfriend leaning heavily against his shoulder. He smiled and gently nudged him in the side. "Tired?" he asked quietly, tapping his fingers along Jason's leg. "You should go up to bed early."

"It's only like ni-**yawn**."

He laughed when he heard his boyfriend sounding like a little kid. "Go to bed," he insisted. "I'll be up in a little while; I need to talk to my parents."

Jason frowned and scratched at his head before shrugging. "Alright. I am kind of tired." He pecked Kyle gently on the cheek before climbing up the stairs. Kyle smiled after him, trying to tell himself that he was doing the right thing.

"Mom, Dad? Can I talk to you both about something really serious for a minute?"

His father frowned deeply and clicked off the television before turning to him. "What's on your mind, son?"

Kyle pulled his knees up to his chest like they would protect him from the backlash of what he was about to say. "I've been thinking about Jason's situation… how hard it's going to be for him to take care of Missy all by himself."

His parents both looked surprised since he was pretty much agreeing to what they had said last time the whole family had talked without Jason. But Kyle knew that he had come to a very, _very_ different conclusion about what should be done than his parents had.

"That's why Jason's going to need a lot of help. While he's living here next year, thing should be okay, right? But after that, when he transfers to Tech, he's going to have to work to pay for school. But if he manages to get custody, he'll have to pay someone to watch Missy. So I've been thinking… if, maybe, I transferred home after next year, I could _help_ Jason take care of her."

His father's face went through the full spectrum of colors as his blood boiled and Kyle silently counted down to the explosion.

"HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?!"

_Ka-boom_.

"No. I'm being dead serious."

"Kyle, we've talked about this!" his mom wailed, looking horrified.

He tried to remain calm, knowing that yelling would only make things worse. "The situation has changed. Last year, there was no real reason that Jason and I couldn't be apart except that we missed each other like crazy, of course. But next year, Jason's going to need me. If I was going to Tech with him, I could help Jason watch after his sister. I mean, I won't do it if he doesn't get Melissa, but if he does I'm going to help him."

"You are not! You made the decision to go to Princeton and are going to stand by it!" his dad barked.

Kyle tightened his fingers, nails digging into his palms. "Please stop yelling," he said, knowing that he would just start shouting back if his dad didn't calm down, fast.

"How can you just sit there so calmly?! You're talking nonsense! I'm not going to allow you to throw away a chance like this!"

"Allow me? This is my decision! I know I can get a scholarship to Tech if I apply, so I won't have to work while I'm at school there. It will be cheaper for you guys, and I can help Jason with his sister." To Kyle, it seemed like the perfectly logical thing to do.

Of course he was proud to be going to a top university like Princeton; it wasn't an opportunity that just anybody got. But even though he liked his classes well enough, he had had a hard time making friends. Too many of the people were kind of stuck-up. Sure, there were some nice people but no one that he had formed an instant bond with – no one he couldn't live without. No one as close as the boyfriend he loved.

"Why did you start going to Princeton if you weren't going to finish?" his father snapped, "Going there is the best thing for you and you know it!"

"Maybe it's the best education-wise, but I'll be _happier_ if I'm with Jason and Missy!"

"Honey, we understand, really we do. You want to help Jason and that's great. But this is about your future," his mom murmured.

"Mom, I know all of this. But I have to think about _all_ of the things that I want and make the decision that's best overall. And it's going to Tech with Jason."

His father slammed a hand down on the arm of his chair. "You're too young to know what you want, Kyle!"

That was the last straw for him. He was **sick** of them talking down to him. "I'm an adult whether you choose to treat me like one or not!" he exploded, "No, I've not had a lot of time to think through _every __**possible**_ outcome, but this is what I think is best!"

His father stared at him, seeming stunned. Kyle understood why; he so rarely lost his temper like that, especially with his parents.

"Look, I'm sorry, but I'm old enough to make my own choices. I can't always have the two of you deciding things for me."

He and his father stared each other down for a long moment, waiting to see who would back down first.

"And what does Jason think about all of this?" his father challenged, a sharp edge in his tone that set off immediate warning signals in Kyle's head. Was that a threat to Jason's place in the house? But that was completely unlike his father!

Thank God he hadn't mentioned it to his boyfriend yet. "He doesn't know. I thought the three of us should talk about this before I bring it up with him. I know he'll say that I should stay at Princeton."

"Then listen to him!" his mother pleaded.

He shook his head firmly. "I really think this is for the best."

His father pressed his lips together firmly. "You'd better think long and hard about what you want to do, Kyle. If you screw up Princeton for yourself, you're going to regret it."

"Like I wouldn't regret leaving Jason on his own?" Kyle shot back, standing up and moving to go upstairs. In his mind, it was a strategic retreat.

Jason was already under the covers, eyes closed, but he cracked them open when Kyle came in. "What, did you get tired too?" he rasped.

He laughed and kissed Jason on the cheek. "Not really."

"… I'm sorry I'm causing trouble with you and your parents," Jason said quietly.

"So you heard?" He kind of hoped not; he wanted to come up with a more delicate way of posing his idea to his boyfriend.

"Not really, I just heard your dad yelling."

"It's not your fault," Kyle assured. "I said something that made him mad; don't worry about it." He gently nudged Jason's side, trying to roll him onto his stomach. All of a sudden, he felt the urge to pamper his boyfriend.

"What are you doing?" Jason asked, sounding amused.

"Roll onto your tummy for me?" He leaned down and nibbled lightly on Jason's ear to make him _want_ to follow his orders.

"I'm not sure I trust you, but… alright."

Kyle had to move back as Jason flopped over and buried his face in the pillows. Then he climbed on top of him and started rubbing his strong shoulders, feeling the tight muscles under his palms. "You're so stressed lately," Kyle murmured, "is it alright if I help you relax?"

"Alright? Kyle, I would worship you."

"Maybe we can save that for tomorrow," he teased even though he blushed as he said it. He jumped up and hunted down the bottle _Vanilla Noir_ lotion Nelson had given him a while back. He took a sniff and deemed it acceptable – it wasn't too flowery – and got back on the bed. He squirted some of the lotion in his hands and warmed it up.

"You know you're wonderful, right?" Jason asked, voice muffled by the pillows.

He laughed and put his hands on Jason's back. "I don't know that, but I like hearing it." He splayed his fingers wide and worked them all over Jason's skin. He squeezed his shoulders, feeling the tight muscles clench and then relax under his touch. Jason made a tiny sound and Kyle grinned, thinking it was precious.

Since Jason was so relaxed, it might be a nice time to talk to him about his argument with his parents. "So do you really think you'll go to Tech after next year?" he asked, pressing down on the area just below Jason's ribs.

"I definitely want to. I'd like to have another conversation with the coach up there… maybe see if I can't get my scholarship back. We did great this year, and I know the team will do good next year, so they _should_ be begging me to go there."

"I wish you hadn't gotten into that stupid fight with Dwayne last year," he said, running his thumbs along Jason's spine.

"Yeah, well, you and me both. … I really hope I can work something out with the coach there. Otherwise I'll probably end up taking out loans that I'll be repaying until I retire _and_ having to work."

"I thought the same thing," Kyle confessed. "But what happens if you do get Missy? If you have to work, you'll have to have someone watching her in the evenings."

Jason groaned and shifted to turn back over but Kyle wouldn't let him. "Well… I don't know. If I'm at Tech, maybe I can get Deb or Cindy to watch her, but I would feel horrible about asking them to babysit all the time."

"If you have to pay someone to watch her, you'll hardly be making a profit from working after your classes."

"You think I don't know that?"

"Don't take an attitude with me, Jason. I've been thinking about something… there's really no way you can take care of Melissa by yourself. So… if you do get custody of her, how would you feel about me transferring home so I can help you look after her?"

Jason pushed himself hard against the mattress and turned over, looking up at Kyle. "You're kidding, right?"

"No, I'm serious. Think about it; I could probably get any state college to pay my way, and I could watch Missy in the evenings if you did have to work. Plus, if they wouldn't let you live in the dorms with her… maybe… we could get a place not far from campus for the three of us?" He hoped that his tone of voice didn't show just how much he wanted that; he knew he probably had way too much faith in the forever-ness of him and Jason, but it hadn't lead him wrong yet.

"That would be great, but I definitely don't want you to have to leave Princeton. I mean… that's like me fucking up your entire future."

Kyle pressed his lips together – since when did Jason sound so much like his parents? "It wouldn't be. Maybe… maybe I don't see 'my future' the way everyone else does." He moved off of Jason and leaned against the headboard, pulling his knees up.

Jason seemed to realize he'd upset him because he laid a hand on Kyle's leg lightly. "But what if someday we broke up or something? You might start blaming me-."

"I wouldn't," Kyle interrupted. "I hope that never happens, but if it does I would know that it was my choice. It's not like you're twisting my arm making me."

"But you made the choice to go to Princeton," Jason protested, looking up at him with his dark eyes.

"I know I did, and it ended up being the best choice at the time because of what happened with your scholarship… but we won't end up in that situation again. We'll know for sure where you're going to be before I do anything."

"This is crazy," Jason murmured.

"Why is it so crazy?" he demanded. "Am I nuts for wanting to be with my boyfriend?"

Jason sighed but grabbed one of Kyle's hands and put it back on his shoulder. Kyle smiled softly and gave it a firm squeeze.

"Nah. I want to be with you, too. … I'm going to do **everything** I can to get Missy, but if I don't, you have to stay at Princeton. Deal?"

Kyle nodded and moved his hand to Jason's chest. He could feel his boyfriend's heart pounding under his palm. "Deal."


	13. Nelson IV

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ Finals are the devil. Does it make sense that a student who got a 4.0 last semester and is making A's in all but one class this semester is making a C in a gen. ed.? No? I didn't think so either.

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

CHAPTER TWELVE - Nelson

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

Nelson eyed the bedroom door warily, wishing that Manny and David were working in the living room where he could keep an eye on them. But Manny worked best in his 'artistic space' and the room was too small for all three of them to cram into.

He hadn't said anything when Manny had told him David was coming over again, even though everything inside of him screamed at him to throw a fit worthy of the big screen. Manny was still trying to swear that – despite whatever had happened to make Nelson not like David – his friend was a great guy. Well Nelson sure knew better than that, so he pretty much growled whenever David's name even came up in conversation.

He paced back and forth behind the couch, ignoring the cheesy drama playing on Lifetime. Ernesto was out _again_ and he wasn't ready to hear Kyle's ever-helpful nagging, so he had to endure his torture alone.

It would be easier if David would mess up – just once – in front of Manny. If Manny and David weren't on the fast road to becoming "BFF"s, then he might have been able to work up the courage to admit what he'd done to Manny. Instead, it was just going to make him sound crazy or worse like he was trying to keep Manny from having any other friends.

The doorknob rattled and Nelson jerked, staring as first Manny then David came out of the bedroom. Manny's hands were covered in paint and there were a few splotches on his cheeks. Nelson almost grinned; so adorable.

"I'm gonna go clean up," Manny announced, "David, why don't you watch TV with Nelson or something? I'll get a quick shower then treat you to dinner for helping me."

"Well, I'm certainly not going to turn down free food if you're offering," David chuckled, his green eyes dancing. He walked up to Nelson slowly, smile turning predatory as soon as his back was to Manny.

That was not a friendly look.

"Can I come shower with you?" Nelson asked, not wanting to be alone with David for half a second!

"Nelson, no! I can't take all evening. You and David play nice, okay?" Before he could protest further, Manny disappeared into the bathroom.

David smirked and sat down on the couch, flipping the channels. "If I didn't think better, I would think you don't like me."

"I don't!" Nelson snapped, staying standing so they wouldn't be pressed together. "I know about you and Cameron," he shot, hoping to unbalance the arrogant bastard.

But David just looked _proud_. "Yeah…. I managed to teach him a few things Manny would have appreciated." He gazed into the air over Nelson's left shoulder. "Well, more than a few."

"Do you get some kind of sick thrill from doing crap like that then turning around and being all buddy-buddy with Manny?"

"Oh yes. It's almost better than the sex itself. I would meet up with Manny, still covered in his ex-boyfriend's sweat." He laughed. "I wonder how you found out about it, though. Perhaps that big-mouth Manny calls a best friend? I'm amazed he managed to keep his mouth shut when he found out at all."

"I would say Ernesto's ten times the man you are, but he's a hell of a lot more than ten times _nothing_."

"Why, Nelson, my feelings are hurt. You're being rather cold to me. Is it because you're jealous?" he teased. "Because don't worry, I'm more than done with Cameron now."

Nelson could feel his blood boiling under his skin. He wanted nothing more than to punch this guy in the face, but Manny would throw a fit if he did. "I want you to stop hanging around Manny!"

"Why? You know, Nelson, he wouldn't do it with me even if I did proposition him. He's not that easy."

He felt something in his brain explode! "I was drunk as hell off of whatever it was you were shooting down my throat and you took me into some nasty alley all alone! I told you multiple times to stop and you didn't! That was rape!"

"It wasn't rape if you enjoyed it," David argued, looking like the cat in the canary cage.

"I'm going to tell Manny!" Nelson announced, "Then let's see what happens!"

"Like he'll believe you. I got the feeling you would squeal; why do you think I've been wasting my time befriending him? Because I actually enjoy his company?" David laughed as if though the idea was ridiculous.

Nelson had never been so sure that a man was the devil in his life.

The water turned off and David smirked, turning his attention back to the television. Nelson glared at him heatedly, wanting to burn him into a pile of ashes right where he was sitting.

Manny came out of the bathroom a while later, rubbing his hair with a towel to get it dry.

"Hey," David said, turning over his shoulder to look at Manny, "wanna go get an ice cream or something?"

"Sounds good to me! Nelson? Coming with us?" Manny's tone was hopeful; Nelson knew he was hoping that whatever problem was between him and David they'd gotten over it. Instead, Nelson just hated the bastard more and more.

"Nah. I'm staying here."

Manny's smile fell. "Really? Alright." He grabbed his wallet from the counter and shoved it in the pocket of his baggy shorts.

Nelson felt bad for disappointing him, but there was no way in hell he was 'getting ice cream' with David.

When Manny got home, Nelson swore to himself that he was going to tell Manny everything.

VVVVVVVVVV

Nelson was laying naked on top of the comforter on their bed, listening to the pop-country surging through his headphones, when Manny finally got back from his man-date with David.

Manny sat down on the bed and just stared at him. Not a lustful stare – that Nelson was used to – but a confused, penetrating stare. He started speaking, but Nelson couldn't hear him over the music.

He tapped the power button and slid the headphones off of his ears. "Sorry, I didn't catch a word of that. Start over?" he asked, giving Manny his puppy-eyed look.

"I really wish you would at least _try_ to get along with David!" Manny said, crossing his arms over his chest. "I know you're not required to like all of my friends, but it would be nice if they didn't ask me why you hate them."

"I told you, I just don't like him. And if you knew everything he's done, you wouldn't like him either."

"I don't want to hear it, Nelson."

He sat up and curled his knees under himself, trying to look as serious as possible even though he was as naked as the day he was born. "Would you want to hear it if I said it had to do with Cameron?"

Manny froze. "You mean… my ex, Cameron? That one?"

"Yeah…. You know how you told me he went all 'I think I'm straight' on you?"

"Like I'll really forget that any time soon," Manny said, taking off his shirt and tossing it into the corner where their laundry always ended up before one of them broke down and did it.

"Well, I got to talking with Nes the other night and he told me something I didn't know. Apparently, a couple of days after you and Cameron, um, Splitsville… Cameron slept with David."

Manny stared at him with shock in his gorgeous eyes. "You're kidding. That's not funny, Nelson."

"I wasn't trying to be. Nes wouldn't lie about something like that." Nelson hated hurting Manny, but he knew that it was just the prelude to a much worse hurt that was on its way.

"Nelson, I know you don't like David, but that's **no** reason-!"

"Do you think I would make up something like that?" Nelson squawked with indignation.

Manny poked out his bottom lip in a pout. "David's not that kind of guy."

"… He is, Manny. He really, really is." He remembered Jason's advice – start off with reminding Manny he was plastered to lessen the blow. "Do you remember when we went to that party at the club owned by that gallery guy? The night I met David and the rest of your friends?"

"Of course I do," Manny answered, "but what does that have to do with anything that probably didn't happen with David and Cameron?"

Nelson took a deep breath, trying to get the courage to do this. He'd started a GSA right under the nose of his disapproving principal, dated an HIV positive boy, and made a spur-of-the-moment decision to move to Los Angeles, but none of that was anything compared to the bomb that he was about to drop on the best relationship he'd ever been in.

"When David and I were dancing, I started feeling the after affects of that blue thing that I was shooting down my throat. We ended up going out to the alleyway behind the club so we could talk…." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "We did it, Manny. David fucked me."

Manny's jaw dropped open and his eyes were huge. "Nelson… no way! There's no way!"

"Why would I lie about something like that, Manny?! I mean, realistically! He pushed me against the brick wall and did me."

"Do you really hate David so much that you would make something like that up just to try and drive a wedge between us?"

Nelson let out a sound of disbelief. How could Manny think he was making that up? If he was going to make up a story, then he would be lying to hide the fact that he'd cheated on his boyfriend, not coming right out and admitting it. That was like the definition of stupid!

"I'm telling the truth, Manny!"

"So this happened a while ago, but you're just getting around to telling me about it?" Manny asked in a tone of disbelief and disapproval.

"Well… I knew you wouldn't believe me!" Nelson snapped in a weak argument. "David told me straight up right after that he would deny, deny, deny if I did tell you."

"So you're going to say horrible things about David, but of course if I ask him he'll say they're not true? Yeah, Nelson, that all sounds totally believable. David's my friend! He wouldn't do that to me! He was my friend _before_ community college even! He comforted me after the whole chaos with Cameron. He saw how much it hurt me; he wouldn't turn around and do that."

"Manny, think about it! Why would I say that I cheated on you if I didn't?! That's insanity!"

"If you really cheated on me, why would you tell me about it?"

Nelson scowled at him angrily. How dare his boyfriend not believe him! Wasn't that part of being in a relationship?

Finally, Manny stood up and grabbed his pajama pants from the back of the rolling chair. "I can't handle this, Nelly," he said. "I'm going to go crash on the couch tonight."

"What?!" Nelson couldn't believe Manny was going to do that!

"We're going to argue if I stay and I don't want to do that." Despite Nelson's half-formed protests, Manny walked out of the room and let the door slam closed behind him.


	14. Interlude: Kyle

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ Finally! Summer vacation! Let's celebrate with a cheesy interlude between Kyle and Jason!

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

INTERLUDE - Kyle

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

Kyle sighed as he pulled on his thin, wire-framed glasses, having taken his contacts out for the night. Everything around the house was so damn awkward ever since he and his father had exploded at each other, but he really felt like it wasn't all _his_ fault. Things had even been uncomfortable for Jason, who apparently felt like he was caught in the middle of the fight.

His boyfriend was sitting at his computer, clicking about online, looking at sites full of all kinds of legal jargon that neither of them really understood.

He walked up behind Jason and put a hand on his shoulder. "You're going to give yourself a headache," he murmured, "Why don't you come lay down?"

Jason frowned and drummed his fingers against the desk for a minute before nodding. "Yeah… alright." He pushed the chair back and tossed himself onto Kyle's bed, bouncing for a minute.

Kyle laughed and sat down next to him, thinking Jason was so cute when he did little things like that that made him seem like a kid. They sat there in silence for a few minutes, each lost in their own thoughts.

The honey-haired male's mind drifted to the sites still minimized on his computer screen. He was so afraid what not getting custody of Melissa would do to Jason. There was no doubt that his boyfriend cared more about his sister than anyone, and if she did end up hurt, Kyle was afraid Jason would end up in jail for killing their father or something.

He glanced at Jason's handsome face and saw that he was frowning with his own thoughts. He wondered if they were thinking the same thing, but Jason disproved it when he started to speak.

"I just wish you and your parents weren't fighting," he commented with a heavy sigh. "I can't help feeling like if I wasn't here things would be alright. Plus, it's so awkward because no body's really talking to each other." He leaned up on his elbows and looked at Kyle. "I mean, is all of this really because you mentioned changing colleges?"

Kyle shrugged. "I guess so. I know my dad loves me, but sometimes I feel like he's giving me choices then punishing me if I don't pick the choice he wanted me to make. Does that sound crazy?" He shook his head and hunched over so he and Jason would be closer to talk. "He just… doesn't understand that I'm not him."

"What do you mean?"

"I think he expects me to think like he does. To place importance on all of the same things he values."

"You don't?" Jason asked, sounding surprised. "But I thought people learned values and all that from their parents."

Kyle smiled. "Well, true. But… well, like in this situation education comes first and… you know 'us' comes second. Well, that's easy for him to say because he's not a part of this relationship. I get that college is important, but it's not like I'm going to stop going to school. I also don't think either of them understands that this isn't really about you."

Jason blinked and sat up fully, forcing Kyle to pull back or they would have whacked their heads together. "Alright, you're going to have to explain that one to me. I thought you were considering this mess so that you could help me if I get Missy. Am I wrong?"

"No…. But let's say I was dating someone else. If they were in this same situation, then I would be having the exact same thoughts. Probably not with so much certainty that I'm doing the right thing, but still." He weighed his words, wondering how to word this without getting into the same argument they had when Kyle had wanted to follow Jason to whatever school he was going to end up at a year ago. "I think we all want certain things and every decision like this really comes down to picking which choice we think will help us reach those goals easier."

"I guess I can see that. But I mean, you're talking about big things, right? It's not like 'oh, should I wear the blue shirt or the white one'."

He laughed and folded his hands in his lap. "Nothing that insignificant. But like whether or not to go to college, where, for what degree, whether or not to get a masters, whatever. It's all about what will help us get what we really want."

"So what is it that you 'really want'?" Jason asked. Kyle would have felt that his boyfriend was mocking him if the look in his eyes wasn't flat and serious. He meant what he had asked but was Kyle ready to tell him? Talking about goals and dreams and things like that… he and Jason talked about a lot of things, but they had never really been _that_ open. Even he and Nelson had only talked about it a few times, in the dark in the moments before one or the other drifted off.

"I… I want the same things most people want," Kyle admitted. "The 'American dream'. I'm not out to change the world; I want a regular nine-to-five like everyone else. A house in the suburbs with a white picket fence and a partner to live there with. I want them to legalize gay marriage so that someday… maybe…." He trailed off, not sure if they were anywhere _near_ ready to have that conversation. "I mean, I want a family. To adopt kids and watch them grow up." He blushed and lowered his gaze to his hands. "I guess it sounds pretty cliché, but… I'm not exactly a complicated person."

"I guess I can see where that would be nice," Jason agreed, but he sounded like his mind was far away. "So you'd rather transfer home because…."

"Because I could really see the two of us as Melissa's new parents. You practically raised her anyway, so you're kind of like her father already. And we would be a little bit like a family if I was with you helping you look after her. Right?"

"I never thought about it that way. If I went and actually adopted Missy, she really would be my daughter."

"Do you feel like you're ready to have a seven-year-old daughter?" Kyle asked him carefully, not wanting to start a fight.

"Hell no!" Jason snapped, surprising him. "I'm not ready to have an any age kid; fuck, Kyle, I'm nineteen! But this is one of those situations where… I mean, whether I'm 'ready' or not, I have to do it. To be honest, I doubt I'll be ready for kids _ever_."

Kyle felt his heart sink to his knees. "You don't… want kids?" he asked, hoping that his voice didn't shake and give away how much the thought that they disagreed on something so critical hurt him.

"I guess it never really occurred to me to want them or not. I mean, we're kind of taught that having children is one of those things that you just **do**. It's like breathing or something – no consideration necessary. Like, okay, I know I'm not exactly a hard-core traditional Catholic. I'm all for gay rights – not sure I would call it 'marriage' but whatever – and condoms aren't an instrument of the devil. But I never thought about _not_ having kids."

That answer didn't please Kyle at all, mostly because it wasn't an answer. "So… I mean… if we do stay together children wouldn't be out of the question?"

"I think I might like kids," Jason answered thoughtfully. "I mean, I doubt they'd be much fun when they're still young, but – you know – when they got older." He laughed softly. "They'd hate me if they wanted to play basketball because I'd be that parent having them up at four to practice. You could be the one who nags about their A-minuses."

"I'm not that bad," Kyle chided, listening to every shift and change in Jason's tone. "Can I ask… before, like… I don't know, back when you were with Debra… what did you want out of life?"

"Well… I'm with you, nothing complicated. I was never interested in going pro with basketball or anything, but I'd like to coach. I'm not the type that's 'oh, this area's up and coming', but I'd like a nice two-story in a fairly crime-free neighborhood. I don't… much see myself as the marrying type, but I've always been like that," he added quickly as Kyle's heart sank to his ankles. "I guess I'm a little bit afraid that I'll end up like my father. I would rather die than be _him_, but I'm not sure if I know how else a 'family' is supposed to work."

Kyle reached for Jason's forearm, paused, then rested his fingers on the warm skin. "Couldn't we… well, you and whoever you do end up with, try to figure it out for yourselves? I think everybody just tries to fix the mistakes that they saw their parents make and keep the good things. Admittedly, some people have a shakier base than others, but I know you, Jason. There's too much good in you for you to turn out like him."

Jason snorted. "That's probably one of the froofiest things you've ever said, you know that? And it was extremely vague."

"You've already proved that you love your family more than he did. And even when the two of us are ready to rip each other's organs out, you don't yell at me or throw things or try to hurt me. And even though I _hate_ the fact that you drink, at least you don't get plastered. You're a hell of a lot more mature than your father."

"Well, I couldn't be less. Kyle, I've got to ask, do you really think you want to help me raise a kid? The two of us will fight **all the time** about how this or that should be done. And the midnight nightmares, the three a.m. stomach bugs, and all of those things that you've never really had to deal with. Plus, if we're living together you're going to be ready to kill me after the fifth times the laundry ends up _near_ the basket. It will take an act of God to make me do dishes, and I _don't_ cook."

"I'm not expecting perfect, Jason. Why does **everyone** treat me like some silly little kid? Okay, I'm an optimist. And a romantic. But trust me, first thing we'll do is get a comfortable couch so I don't have to hear you whining about your back hurting in the morning."

"Not funny!"

"Is so funny. But in all seriousness, I know what you're like. This summer and next will be a good opportunity to see if we can live peacefully in the same house. If by some mistake of society Missy does end up with your father, then I'll stay at Princeton but we'll know if things could possibly work… after school."

"You've always done this," Jason complained suddenly and Kyle jerked back, surprised. He pushed his glasses up his nose by the bridge and he could feel his bottom lip starting to tremble.

"Done what?" he demanded.

"I've told you, I don't do well thinking about the future. I like the thought of taking things day to day, just dealing with things as they come."

"Jason, if all you ever do is react, then you might be able to keep bad things out of your life but you won't be getting many good things unless you look for them. Do you expect to just wake up one morning and have everything figured out?"

"I would like to not have to have everything decided right now."

Kyle sighed and leaned against Jason's shoulder. "Meet me in the middle? Do we have _anything_ decided?"

"Yeah. I want to raise Missy. I want to be with you. I want to finish school eventually. I know they're pretty vague goals."

He shook his head. "They're fine. You don't have to know today where or when or how things will happen. I mean, who can say what will happen in the future. But going into it without a battle plan is just reckless."

"God forbid I do something reckless. Coming out spur-of-the-moment to my drunk father, kissing my boyfriend breathless in front of an entire gym full of people, noooooooooo not a bit of that was reckless."

Kyle couldn't stop himself from laughing. Jason had a point. Maybe gung-ho and bustling along worked best for Jason; he just wish that it didn't make him so nervous!


	15. Jason V

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ Things have been nuts lately, so the wait between chapters will be getting a wee bit longer. With two grandparents in and out of the hospital, I'm just exhausted. And I'm too afraid to work on this during our vacation to the Crescent Hotel; the ghosts might erase it!

Nothing important really happens in this chapter I'm afraid. It's more like filler so I can keep up my pattern. Well, maybe the second half will become important in a few chapters, but that's about it…. **Hides face in shame**.

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CHAPTER THIRTEEN - Jason

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"What are we going to want for dinner?" Jason grumbled as he walked past the ends of the aisles in the supermarket he and Kyle had volunteered to run to as a peace offering to his boyfriend's parents.

"I have no idea. Um… I guess the people shopping get to pick, so how about spaghetti?" Kyle asked, digging through the cart for the list that had gotten buried under the cereal box.

Jason shrugged and glanced up at the signs hanging over the aisles. "You get sauce and I'll get the pasta?" He wanted to finish up quick and get out of there – he despised shopping and had only come along because Kyle had already offered for them to go before he knew anything about it.

"That sounds fine," his boyfriend agreed, and Jason turned down the next aisle while Kyle walked on, one hand still in the black-hole of the shopping cart.

He walked past the different kind of shells until he got to the plain spaghetti and picked up a few different packages, not really seeing the difference between them. What exactly _was_ 'angel hair'? He shuddered; nothing 'hair' belonged in food.

Finally he just picked one of the packs of pasta strands at random and tossed the other one back onto the shelf, not caring if it was in the right place or not since – again – no difference. He was about to turn and go find his boyfriend when he stopped, seeing someone step into the aisle with a 24-case of beer in each hand.

_Oh shit_.

"Good God, my faggot son even _grocery shops_," his father spat, eyes cold and dead like a shark's.

"Well, I'm going to have to feed Missy when I manage to get her away from you, aren't I?" he challenged. "I hope you have actual food wherever you're staying, or did Missy and I inherit your ability to survive off of pretzels and beer?"

His father dropped one of the cases and took a threatening step towards him. "You think you can talk to me that way?!" his old man demanded

Jason narrowed his eyes. "Go ahead and hit me; I'm sure the cops and social workers would love to hear about it."

His father stopped, hand half-way in the air. "Are you threatening me?!"

"Of course not," he replied sarcastically. "Just a fair warning. What with the charges I'm filing against you for the way you used to beat on me when I was a kid, I doubt you'll want to draw any more negative attention."

"Bullshit! You wouldn't fucking dare!" his father barked, but – Jason noticed with a bit of self-satisfaction – he sounded scared.

"For my sister? Yes I would," Jason replied, letting his father know that he was absolutely serious.

"You think anyone is going to believe you?!"

Jason pulled his lips into something _almost_ like a smile. "Other people had their suspicions, like the family I always stayed with when **you** made it too dangerous for me to stay in the house."

"I'm not going to make this easy on you, you little queer."

"Why won't you let her come with me? You don't even want Missy; you'd just do anything you could to make my life harder," he accused firmly.

His father's face split into one of the meanest grins Jason had ever seen. "You think so? You really think you matter enough that I would go out of my way?" His eyes were dark like an animal's. "I'm actually rather fond of the girl; unlike you, your sister isn't an utter disappointment!"

Jason's vision started to go red and he only managed to hold himself back by a single thread of control. "When I get custody of Missy – and I don't care if it takes until the day she turns eighteen, I won't stop trying – I'm going to make sure that you can never come near either of us again," he growled. His dad looked like he wanted to say something more, but Jason turned on his heel and walked off, not even wanting to hear what that bastard had to say; it would only be something else to make him feel worthless.

He stormed down the aisles and managed to find Kyle, absently shoving things around on a shelf. "Hey, I was just about to come find- … what's wrong?" his boyfriend asked, turning and resting his fingers on Jason's tense upper-arm.

"… ran into my damn father," he hissed through his teeth. "I hate that man."

"He's here?" Kyle asked, seeming surprised. "Well, we have everything we need so we should just go before a fight starts up. … Did he say anything to you?"

Jason wanted to explode and tell him exactly what had been said, but he also didn't want to cause a scene in the middle of the grocery store. He nodded curtly. "I don't want to talk about this here."

"Of course not." Kyle grabbed their cart and started pushing it forward and Jason tossed the slightly crushed bag of pasta on top. He probably should have grabbed a different one, but he didn't want his father to see how badly he'd rattled him.

As they headed to the check-out lines, his father was two rows over with his cases of beer. His old man gave him a nasty grin and purposely let his gaze slide from Jason to Kyle who was digging through the cart to make sure they hadn't forgotten anything in their rush.

Jason moved to stand beside Kyle and turned to talk to him, putting himself between his father and his boyfriend and keeping himself from having to see that bastard's smirk.

VVVVVVVVVV

Later that night, Jason was slumped down on the couch cushions while Kyle was upstairs taking a shower. He was watching one of those evening TV dramas when Kyle's dad walked in and grabbed the remote, tapping the power button.

"… Yes, sir?"

"I want **you** to convince Kyle that he's being foolish," Mr. Meeks said without preamble. "He's not listening to me anymore."

Jason frowned and glanced down at the carpet. He should have seen this coming; now that Nelson wasn't around to blame Kyle's choices on, of course they would become his fault. "Um… I'm not sure how much help I would be. I mean, Kyle and I _have_ talked about it."

"And what did he say?"

He didn't like being asked that – it was like he was being asked to broadcast something Kyle had told him in private. "Just that… he thinks it's for the best. But… he'll stay at Princeton if I don't get custody of my sister, that's one of the things we got down for sure." That was one of the harder things to say because of how important Kyle's parents would be in helping him get Missy. Now, they had a fair reason for **not** wanting to help him.

"Why is he so quick to say that?"

"I think because… I can take care of myself just fine. It won't be easy, but no matter what I do I can scrape along. But if I do have Missy, I might have to hire babysitters, and make better meals that whatever can be thrown in a microwave, and help with homework…. I'm not good at things like that, and paying someone to watch Missy could cost a fortune. She'll be in school during the day so I'll have time to go, but I'll have to work evenings to pay for it…."

"Can't you find some other school that will pay your way?"

"I don't know where that would be. And even if a school did pay for classes and books and what-not, they probably wouldn't pay for off-campus housing or food or whatever for my sister. I'm going to keep working and saving money, but it's not going to be cheap."

"But your dad should have to pay child support," Mr. Meeks argued.

"Yeah… when he's actually bringing in an official paycheck. He works as little as he can get away with and will do anything he can to be paid in cash. There's a difference between what should happen and what will happen."

"And your mother didn't leave you much?"

Jason flinched. Good God; he knew Kyle's dad was to-the-point, but how blunt could you get? "No… I'd say seventy percent went straight to my father. … Sir? How could she have not dealt with all of this at least when I turned eighteen? She _knew_ my dad wouldn't take care of me; I'd been talking about moving out since I was sixteen."

"I honestly don't know. Both Anna and I went in the day Kyle turned eighteen but even if we hadn't we would have dealt with it before a year-and-a-half had gone by."

"Well obviously Ma wasn't great at paperwork. Either she never got around to _starting_ the whole divorcing my dad thing or she was lying to me and never actually planned to go through with it."

Mr. Meeks sighed. "You've pretty much been thrown to the wolves over the past couple of years, haven't you?"

"It feels like it sometimes. I think that's part of the reason Kyle's so determined to help me. If this whole thing was caused by a whole series of stupid mistakes on my part, he would probably be more like 'well, you made your bed now lie in it'." He sighed and confessed something he would never say out loud to his boyfriend. "I think a lot of the time he flat-out feels sorry for me."

"That's an interesting way to look at it."

"Well, I mean I know as well as anyone how bad the situations I keep finding myself in are. Without his help, I don't know how I would have made it through all of the crap that's been piled on me."

"I can understand that, Jason, but it's not good for either of you if Kyle is just thinking about you and never about himself."

He puffed up indignantly, and trying to keep himself from glaring because wouldn't that make a _great_ impression at this point? "I never said that. If Kyle didn't think about himself every now and then, we would have been having this conversation last year."

"Look… Kyle doesn't seem to understand that I've been there. I was you guys' age once. I know what it's like to be crazy in love and make impulsive decisions because of that. But Kyle always acts like I'm the enemy any time I try to point that out."

"I think that's because you're assuming he is being impulsive. He's been complaining about how you treat him like he's still a kid. He knows that he's not making the choices you want, but it's _his_ life."

"I'm not going to let him throw away his entire future just so he can feel all grown up!"

Jason shook his head. "He's not throwing anything away. He would toss me to the curb before he'd give up college for me. He knows Princeton is a better school than any place that would let me past the front gates, but… I mean, it's not like he's thriving up there. Besides the swim team and class, what does he do besides talk to me and Nelson on the phone? He spends more time talking to us than everyone he goes to school with combined. I've only heard him casually mention a few people he's met, no one that sounds like a best friend. Maybe he really would be happier if he was with me."

"We can't spend our whole lives doing only what makes us happy," Mr. Meeks argued, "Sometimes we have to do things that aren't so fun now so that we can get something better later on – like getting a good education for a better job."

Jason stood up and took a step towards the stairs. "With all due respect, Sir, now you're talking to me like _I'm_ a kid and I won't take it with as much grace as your son. I'll also add this; has nothing ever mattered to you more than your job? Because to Kyle there is something more important. Me and Missy." He went upstairs, leaving Kyle's father blinking in shock behind him.


	16. Kyle V

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ I hate family vacations. My mom, her fiancé, and her friend aren't as good of traveling buddies as Kyle, Jason, and Nelson. Though, luckily, no one got food poisoning or made out with some slut in a bar…. At least as far as I saw *wink*.

This is going to be a very short chapter because I'm getting tired of writing filler scenes to add length. I know you guys will just be _crying_ because you waited an extra week for a shorter chapter but… well… I don't know, deal with it.

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CHAPTER FOURTEEN - Kyle

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A few days later, Kyle was getting ready to go to work – already dreading coming home smelling like grease and the industrial cleaner that got used to scrub the bathrooms – when his mom walked into his room and sat down on his bed.

He had to bite back a groan of frustration. This was absolutely the worst time for this. Neither he nor his parents had changed their minds. The last time the Meeks household has been this tense was when he was making his college decision and even that wasn't so bad because the 'underlying source of the problem' as it were wasn't living in the house with them.

"Yes, Mom?" he asked, turning to the mirror over his dresser so he wouldn't have to look her in the eyes for whatever new weight she was going to heap on his shoulders.

"I don't understand what you think most of the time," she murmured thoughtfully. "Your father is very upset, Kyle."

He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, smoothing it down. "I know that. You think I can't feel the tension? It's driving me crazy. But he won't listen and any time I try to explain he just starts yelling."

"Then explain it to me, honey, because I don't really understand either."

He sighed, hoping that this would go slightly better because his mom rarely raised her voice. "Did you always know you wanted to be a mom? I mean, was I part of the plan?"

"Of course I wanted to be a mom. When I found out that you were on the way, I was so happy."

"When I told you I was gay, I still remember you worrying about my not having kids. Do you remember I said that I might have kids one day? The only way that's going to happen is if I adopt them. If whoever my partner is and I adopt them. The same way Jason wants to adopt Missy.

"I want kids, too, Mom. I want a family. I was talking about this with Jason the other day. I want to raise kids and have a husband and a house in a neighborhood like this one. I want to finish four years of school and crunch numbers for some company eight hours a day then come home and cook dinner."

"Kyle, you could get your master's degree! You could go on to get a doctor's! You're going to Princeton, and you're getting excellent grades! Why are you so determined to slight yourself?"

"Maybe I don't want to get a master's or a doctorate, Mom. I know how important college is but I'm not sure I want to spend seven more years locked up in classrooms so I'll be qualified to… what? Be locked up in classrooms teaching until I retire? I would rather finish four years and join the real world."

"Then why can't those four years be at Princeton?"

"Mom… it's not like I'm going to drop out of college. I know how important it is. But… I think helping Jason with Missy is more important. You know he can't do it alone or you and Dad wouldn't be offering to take care of them for an entire year. Mom… if Jason doesn't have someone to help him, he's not going to be able to finish school. And isn't your point how crucial an education is?"

He glanced at her reflection in the mirror and saw her nodding reluctantly at having their own logic thrown back at them, and thrown well.

"Jason's not stupid, Mom, but a scholarship…. If he can't find someplace that can get over his sexuality – that can get over _me_ – then he won't be able to get anything to play basketball. He'll have to work. And support Missy. And pay for a babysitter. Mom… I can get a scholarship _anywhere_ if I keep my grades up next year, I know I can! I can look after Missy while Jason works, or I can get a job. We can do this, Mom."

"Honey." She stood up and came to stand beside him and he turned to look at her for the first time in the conversation. "I think I'm starting to understand, but you and Jason are too young to have the responsibility of a child. Obviously she can't stay with their father, but what about the aunt we met at the funeral?"

"Mom, those three only had each other even when his dad was still living at home. They've already lost their mother and it will be worse for them if they lose each other right now. I truly don't believe that Jason trusts anyone else with his little sister. And he doubts his aunt _wants_ to look after Missy; she will if there's no other way, but…. She's better off with Jason, don't you see?"

His mother sighed and hugged him. "I still think you're making a mistake. You can't give up your lives – either of you – for other people."

"It would only be giving something up if it wasn't what I wanted all along, Mom. I just wish Dad would listen to me even just for a few minutes the way you have."

"When it… does come time… when there's no other way around the confrontation… I'll stand by you, Kyle."

He couldn't have been more shocked if a rabid kangaroo had hopped through his window. "You will?"

"Like I said, I think you're making a mistake, but you're… you're right. You're old enough to make them on your own now. If this is what _you_ want, what you _really_ want, then we should be supporting you no matter how we feel about it. And you seem to have thought about this a lot more than we gave you credit for."

"You two always do that," he mumbled into her shoulder.

"I know, honey. And I'm going to try to be better about it."

He stood there with her for a little while longer, unable to believe that he had finally gotten even one of his parents to accept that he was an adult. He didn't even care that he was going to be late for work.


	17. Nelson V

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ I'm not dead, I swear. I'm just being lazy lately. I've finally gotten into that whole summer thing. Plus, I have to learn to drive. I managed to make it through one year of college without my license, but two will be hard.

Someone be inspiring and give me motivation to actually learn to drive. Because I fucking **hate** being behind the wheel; I've had permits for three years.

**Bonus:** Mucho lurvs for anyone who can figure out what book series I've been reading because of the charas that _aren't_ Alex's.

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CHAPTER FIFTEEN - Nelson

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Nelson couldn't **believe** how Manny was acting! Ever since he had finally broken down and told Manny about what had happened between him and David, his boyfriend had practically been ignoring him! Both Ernesto and Kyle had assured him he'd done the right thing and that Manny would come around soon, but the fact remained that until he did Nelson was miserable!

He had tried to talk to Manny multiple times, but every time Manny started with 'if this is about David, I don't want to hear it!' What was Nelson supposed to do? They weren't even sleeping in the same bed anymore! Manny barely came into the room to grab a change of clothes every morning!

He finished making the bed and went out into the living room where Manny and Ernesto were watching TV. "Hey sexy bois," he greeted blandly, just not as full of energy as usual since he was suffering boyfriend-snuggling-withdrawal.

"Hey Nelly," Ernesto replied, scooting over so Nelson could sit by Manny.

He sat down then groaned when he saw they were watching some bad cop drama. "Aww, isn't 'Queer Eye' on or something?"

"Hush you," Ernesto replied, "I want to see if Ziva's new guy really is the killer they're looking for."

Nelson smirked and relaxed against the back of the couch. Actually, NCIS was kind of cool only because it took place in D.C. He watched with them for a few minutes before Ernesto glanced at his watch and cursed. "Can you TiVo the last of this for me?" he begged, "I gotta go meet Angela. Wish me luck; it's meet the parents night."

"Ouch," Nelson hissed, "Well if they're actually going to lay eyes on you, you'll never be allowed to date her again. Don't you know only handsome guys get to breed?"

"So **that's** why you're queer!"

"Get out of here!"

Ernesto grabbed his jacket and took off laughing. Manny leaned forward and grabbed the remote, hitting the right buttons to record the rest of the show for 'Nes to watch when he got home. Then he turned off the TV and turned to just stare at Nelson.

"… what is it?" he asked, the weight of Manny's gaze making him nervous and afraid that they were about to start arguing again.

"I've been thinking a lot lately. About what you said about David. And I had a long talk with David. Nelson, I'm tired of sleeping on the couch; I'm not getting any sleep and it's making me even crankier."

Nelson grinned. It sounded like Manny wanted to make up and come back into their room. "I totally understand. I never wanted you to sleep out here in the first place; any time you want to come back to the bed I'm great with it!"

"No, I don't think you're understanding me, Nelly. I want to trade for the night. You sleep out here and I take the bed."

Nelson squawked indignantly. "What?! No way! The person who _started_ the fight sleeps on the couch!" he insisted, crossing his arms over his chest and narrowing his blue eyes.

"Yeah, and you started it by saying that stuff about David."

"It's all true though!"

"I don't want to hear it, Nelson! Either trade me for the night or find somewhere else to stay tonight!"

He couldn't believe what Manny had just said to him! "Y-y-you can't just kick me out!" he shouted, "Where the hell am I supposed to go?! I'm not _from_ here; it's not like I can take a bus and crash at Kyle's for the night! You're being a total dick, Manny!"

"Look, I'll ask one of my friends to take you in for the night okay? I mean, I'm not going to throw you out on the street or something! I just can't _think_ with you here. If all we're going to do is argue then we're not going to be able to deal with this any quicker."

"Noooooooo. If you're going to take the word of some **scum** over your boyfriend then we're not going to be able to deal with this at all! Fine! Where do you want to ship me for the night?!" he demanded.

"Mark and his boyfriend offered to let you stay with them for a while."

Nelson crossed his arms and legs, lip curling in anger and glaring at Manny heatedly enough to burn a normal human into a smoldering pile of ashes. "I'll pack my fucking bags."

VVVVVVVVVV

"And here's the bathroom, the one across the hall is the guest room where you'll be sleeping, and the one at the end of the hall is mine and Mark's," Taylor, Mark's pretty blond boyfriend, said, pointing at the doors in turn.

Nelson was still fuming silently at the fight he'd gotten into with Manny and had barely even said thanks to Mark and Taylor for letting him stay because it shouldn't have been necessary!

Taylor brushed his long hair with his fingers, the delicate waves bouncing softly. He was almost too pretty to be a guy – Nelson wondered Mark was actually attracted to women and that was what drew them together! – but his smile was kind and agreeable. "Did Manny feed you before he decided to stick his head up his ass?"

"I didn't exactly have a huge appetite," Nelson groused, giving the blond a small glare.

But he just laughed it off. "Then I'll throw an extra piece of chicken on the George Foreman… unless you're a vegetarian?"

"… Chicken's fine."

Mark stepped into the hall with them, lips quirking. "You're in a fantastic mood."

"You would be too in my situation!" Nelson snapped angrily, "That fucker David got me shit-faced plastered with those blue things he was shooting down my throat, he _seduced_ me, fucked me in an alley, befriended my boyfriend, then _lied_ to him when I tried to tell Manny!"

Mark raised an eyebrow and shook his head, chuckling softly. "I should have known it was something like that," he whispered just loud enough for Nelson to hear. "David's such a slut I would be amazed if he didn't _create_ a new STI just from the interactions of the ones he's got."

Nelson blinked, taken aback. He had been prepared for a fight since Mark was David's friend – hell, he'd been _hoping_ for a fight – but instead it sounded like Mark… believed him?

"Then you don't think I'm just 'making it up' or whatever because I'm supposedly jealous of him?"

Taylor stepped closer to him and rested a hand on his forearm. "He believed me when I told him what David tried with me."

"Then why does Manny think I'm making it up?" Nelson demanded in a rage.

"Because we decided to keep it a secret. There was no reason to start a huge fight just because David's a loose horny bastard. Skye's not exactly the epitome of monogamy, but at least he knows better than to piss where he eats."

"If you _had_ brought it up, then maybe Manny and I wouldn't be fighting!" he accused.

Mark glared at him firmly and Nelson was eerily reminded of his mother. "Perhaps. And rest assured that I'll tell Manny first thing in the morning. But don't try and lay all of this on the two of us."

Goddamn it, now Nelson had… what, four? five? consciences? That was just fucking wrong!

"I know, I know."

Taylor gave him a reassuring smile. "It might take a few days for things to smooth over though. I want Mark to have a 'little talk' with David," he added, glancing at his boyfriend.

"A violent talk?" Nelson asked hopefully. He would pay money to see someone deck that creep.

Mark gave him an undefeatable look and winked. "Only if he refuses to play nice first."


	18. Jason VI

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ Yeah, I know this took me a while. I'm at that point in summer where I read teen fiction about a bunch of kids getting stoned and think 'Goddamn that would feel good right now'. I don't think I've done anything productive since… I don't know, May? Seriously, someone have mercy on me and recommend some new gay fiction. Nothing in my huge cardboard box looks tempting right now.

http:// www. youtube. com/watch?v= uKGoPy-hBgk&feature= PlayList&p=7DCF8404B5797613 &index=0&playnext=1

Remove the spaces and it's my YouTube playlist for the movie "Right By Me" which is based on Rainbow Boys. The acting is… yeah, but it's good for fans.

Made up a name for Jason's father, too…. It's sad that the only one we know is Felicia's.

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CHAPTER SIXTEEN - Jason

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Jason sighed and tossed the stack of mail for Mr. Afferton into the box labeled '3rd Floor'. It was only two-o'clock, but he was aching to get the Hell out of there. He liked all of the people he worked with, they were all pretty much _over_ the Jason-is-gay shocker, and the pay wasn't criminal, but sometimes he wished for more mental stimulation. He occasionally leaned back into the shadows and took naps!

But he was feeling even more claustrophobic because Miss Kelly had called him the night before and asked to meet with him. She had talked with his father and wanted to ask him about a few things that had been said. He wanted to know what bullshit his father had come up with – there was _no_ real reason he couldn't take care of Melissa and his father had to know that.

His supervisor walked up to the table and started stacking the trays of mail. "You doin' alright, Jason?" he asked, leaning against the table. He usually did pretty good at staying out of Jason's business, so he held back an eye-roll.

"I'm okay," he said finally. "There's some tension – as can be expected – and I have a meeting with a social worker but otherwise… yeah, I'm okay. Kind of impatient for today to be over, though. My boyfriend's kind of a nerd and he keeps telling me I should bring a book to read, but I think that would only put me to sleep faster," he confessed, getting a laugh.

"I can imagine. When I was your age, my parents practically had to chain me to a chair to even get me to touch a book. My daughter's a reader though… I just don't get it." The supervisor shook his head. "By the way, Mr. Caplain wants to see you before you head home today."

He frowned. What would his ma's old boss have to say to him at this point? They had talked for a while his first day back to work, but it had been more like one of those duties that the man had to get out of the way than anything.

"So why don't you take the boxes for the upper floors," his supervisor continued, "talk to Mr. Caplain… then I guess you can take off early for the day."

"Really?" Jason sat up, liking that idea. "Thanks!" He stacked the boxes carefully and picked them up, heading for the door. The only bad thing about the building was that it was 'renovated'… which to him just meant old. Old meant lack-of-elevator. So he kept shifting the weight of the boxes as he walked up the flights of stairs.

He left the boxes with the secretaries who would sort them out and give them to the right people, dropped the boxes back down the chute to the basement, then knocked on Mr. Caplain's floor.

"Come in!"

Jason stepped in and nodded to the slightly over-weight man sitting behind an oversized desk, trying not to sneeze from all of the dust collected on the shelves piled high with books. "You wanted to see me, Sir?"

"Yes, yes, sit down."

He sat in the leather chair in front of the desk, ignoring the sound it made that always reminded him of an all-too-alive cow. He brought his hand up and absently bit into his thumbnail before resignedly putting it back down.

Mr. Caplain reached into his desk and pulled out a manila folder and Jason wondered if the man had made some huge production about a case-file needing to be delivered or something. But then he moved on to explain.

"While we were going through the files your mother had in her desk, we came across this. It appears to be unfinished paperwork for her divorce from one Elio Carrillo. Is that your father?"

Jason's stomach clenched and he reached for the folder, but Mr. Caplain didn't hand it over. "Yes sir," he said simply. He could barely believe it. Since this whole mess had started, he'd had no choice but to come to the conclusion that his mother had been lying to him about the divorce. To find out that it was true was… a relief, but it also made him feel a little guilty for not trusting his mother. Even if she had been working way too slow for his comfort on the papers. "Can I see that?"

The man seemed reluctant to hand it over, but Jason kept his hand out for it and eventually Mr. Caplain gave it to him. He opened the folder and stared at the papers covered with his Ma's writing. He couldn't help but feel a bit excited; he was going to see Miss Kelly soon and could give them to her! He knew she wasn't a lawyer but he had the strong feeling she was on his side, not his father's.

"I want to take this," he told the man, moving to stand up. "It's not relevant to a case so that shouldn't be a problem, right?"

"…It shouldn't be. You can take it."

Jason nodded and moved for the door before he could change his mind; Mr. Caplain was obsessive about paperwork. He nodded to the secretary as he headed for the stairwell. _Finally_ he had something that looked like good news.

VVVVVVVVVV

His leg jiggled nervously as he sat across from Miss Kelley with the manila folder spread open between them. He was hopeful that this would change something. "So… what do you think?"

"Well, this will definitely add a new element to the case. Of course you know this isn't official since it's incomplete and there are no witnessed signatures, but it will be something to ask about. If nothing else, you can use it to circle back to the reasons for the divorce… aka, the reasons you would make a better guardian than your sister."

Jason nodded, knowing better than to think he could say 'here's the paper, case closed!'

"Now since the outcome of the child abuse case you're filing against your father will have a huge impact on the custody case, the court is obviously going to want to have a decision made on it first. I've already spoken with your little sister and gotten her account."

He sighed but knew there wasn't anything he could do. He wished that – the second their father walked out on them – their troubles with the bastard had disappeared too. He was afraid what watching the war between him and his father would do to Missy when she grew up.

"This weekend I'm hoping to talk to your coach and your friend's mother. If things go smoothly, the case should be seen by a judge Wednesday after next."

"That seems like a long time," he commented.

"I know, but it's normal in a case like this. We're going to move your sister to your aunt's house-."

"Ana or Claire?" Jason interrupted.

"Claire, and she'll stay there until everything is decided. But I've arranged for you to spend some time with your sister now that we have her account of the abuse. It might be a good time to make sure she really understands everything that's going on."

"Yeah," he agreed, "I doubt my dad would have told her much if anything."

"You need to sit down and talk with her about what it will mean if you _do_ get custody of her. And if you go one step further and adopt her, all of a sudden her brother will be her dad."

"Great," Jason grumbled, putting his head in his hands, "like things need to get any more complicated at this point." Oh well… at least he was getting to see Melissa. God knew he'd kill his father if the girl wasn't alright.


	19. Kyle VI

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ I know, I know. It's been way too long since I updated. In my defense, though, I am now officially moved into my dorm room and will be writing a lot more often. Does anyone fell better? Anyone at all? No?

I also have to add that the paper where I had this entire story planned… kinda got left back at my house. I pretty much remember what happens, but some things may be different than I had planned. Never the less, my forgetfulness shouldn't have too big of an impact on your reading experience.

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CHAPTER SEVENTEEN - Kyle

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Kyle sat at his desk and ran his finger over the track-pad, waking it up from its few-hours-long nap. He got onto the internet, typed the address to check his school e-mail into the bar, and signed in with his id and password. Most of the messages were things that he had no interest in – a blood drive that he was in the wrong state for, some council position had opened up in a club he had never gone to, and someone had their guitar stolen ("has anyone seen it?"). His ex-roommate, Brian, had e-mailed him just to say hey and see how his summer was going, as had two girls who called themselves his 'hags'.

He sighed and typed up a basic EM for them, not getting into all of the drama that had taken over his summer so far. Really, none of it was important enough to have to explain the million events that lead up to it, so he just wrote:

_Having an __**interesting**__ summer. Spending tons of time with my family when I'm not working. The service industry __**sucks**__. Probably won't be going anywhere, which is a shame since one friend was whining at me to visit him in CA. Otherwise just sitting around and watching the grass grow (.035 inches!). How 'bout you?_

Then he sent it to all three of them separately so they would feel like he had thought their messages so special that he would devote a ton of time answering each one individually.

They were fairly nice people, he had to admit, but he sure didn't feel the same emotional connection to them that he had felt towards Jason and Nelson. Granted, he and Nelson had been friends for years and Jason was… Jason, but he really wondered how much better things might be if he had gone to Tech with his friends instead of to Princeton with a bunch of strangers. He knew that he could have made the Princeton strangers into friends, but in his defense he wasn't the partying types, what fraternity would accept him, and none of the clubs really met at convenient times.

Sad as it was, he had probably talked more to Nelson or Jason separately than to random students on campus combined.

Someone knocked at his bedroom door and Kyle closed out before calling "come in!"

His dad walked in and Kyle felt a chill down his back. If they were about to start screaming at each other again… well, no thank you! He would rather keep the fighting out of his bedroom if it was all the same to his father.

But his dad just sat down and stared at him like he had so many times before, like he was trying to peel away his skin and bone and peek into the core of him to find out what made him tick. It was like being under a microscope.

"I can't believe that you're still seriously thinking about screwing up your life by leaving Princeton."

"I won't be 'screwing up my life', Dad. It's not like I'm thinking about quitting college, just moving back to one that's closer to home. I really don't want to argue about this anymore. Apparently neither of us is going to back down," he added, trying not to grumble.

"For God's sake, Kyle! You have an opportunity that most people will _never_ get, but you seem determined to let it all go to pot!"

Kyle took a deep breath and said, "That's your opinion. I think I have an opportunity that most people won't get to help Jason and Melissa. Dad, just because they're not connected to _you_ in any way doesn't mean that they're not my family, just like Nelson. I'm not close to your friends and you aren't close to mine, but at least understand that the people I _chose_ to make part of my life all mean a lot to me."

"That doesn't mean you can sacrifice yourself for them, Kyle!"

"Trust me, when I get to the point of self-sacrifice those two will stop me. Jason's listening to me, even Mom is listening to me, but you're not even trying to see things my way."

"That's because there's no reason behind your choices!" his dad argued, tone full of exasperation.

"There absolutely is!" Kyle had to pause and take a breath to keep from yelling. "Look, when I told you and Mom… about me… one of Mom's biggest worries was that I'd never have children. And she was right to worry; it's not likely that I'll be able to adopt a child in a red state any time before I'm old enough to be the kids' grandparent, and I'll sure never have a biological child. In a way, though, Missy is like Jason's daughter. Even you had to have seen that. I want to be part of that. I love both of them very much and want to help them. To me, that's more important than going to a 'top school'."

His father sighed heavily. "You're not an adult, Kyle. Age-wise, perhaps, but you don't seem to understand. There is a chance things won't work out between you and Jason. It's a high-school romance and you'll have only hurt yourself if you gave up something for him."

"You think I'm not aware how unusual it is that we made it through a year of college apart? Or how extraordinary it is that we got together in the first place? I know all of that, but the fact is that my coming home is best for everyone. If Jason does get custody of Missy, he's not going to be able to take care of her by himself. He'll need me, and so will she."

"You're too young to be helping raise someone else's kid."

"So is Jason!" Kyle argued, "But that's the way things turn out sometimes. Look, when you and mom were separated for a few years while you were doing some school thing, you had the assurance that she was fairly secure and could take care of herself. If you left, you would miss each other but that was the worst of it. I don't have that kind of confidence in Jason's ability to care for himself and a kid. I love him, but I know what he can and can't handle pretty well by now."

His dad opened his mouth to respond but paused and – to Kyle's surprise! – closed it again. "I suppose I can see that."

"I know I'm not making the choice you want me to, but I can't live my life for you or Mom any more than I can for Jason or Nelson or anyone but me. Geez, Dad, don't you understand the pressure you've _always_ put on me? You always wanted me to be some self-confident jock _and_ get perfect grades _and_ be the perfect son and it's just too much! I've never told him this, but I think maybe part of the reason that I'm attracted to guys like Jason is because you always made being like him seem so important. Who knows, maybe subconsciously I thought 'well if I can't _be_ a guy like Jason, I can at least bring one home'."

"Kyle!" his dad snapped, entire face red. Kyle knew he had probably pushed it a bit by saying that, but he pressed on.

"This is probably one of the few decisions I'm making completely free of anyone else's influence, but everyone wants to share their opinion on what I should do with my life. I'm sick of it! If you think you did a good job raising me, then _trust_ me!" he urged desperately.

A few minutes of heavy silence lingered over the room before his dad stood abruptly and headed for the door. "I'll have to think about what you said," he informed Kyle, "but it's nice to see you standing up for yourself for once, even if I don't agree with you." He walked out, leaving Kyle to slump down in his seat and put his head on his desk. Had he, perhaps, in some small way gotten through to his dad?


	20. Nelson VI

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ Screw it, I'm not wasting any more of your time or mine on excuses. I'm just kinda getting tired of this story (no matter how much I love the trio, so many months in the same fandom going to _kill_ me). Plus, I'm starting to get some ideas for GetBackers one-shots – ToshiJuuKazu, my OT3 – so I'm a bit impatient. BUT! And this is a big but, but I'm not going to just leave this story unfinished. I already did that to a few others and I feel bad about it. Luckily, there are only about six more chapters of this one (yes, I already had it planned, so I'm not slighting you guys). Bear with me, kay?

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CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - Nelson

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Nelson was surprised how well he was getting along with Taylor, honestly. He hadn't planned on liking the guy – because making friends might imply that he was going to be there a while – but Taylor was just a great guy. He was always smiling in a way that suggested he knew what you were thinking and liked you anyway. In fact, Nelson hadn't felt this instantly comfortable with many people. Just Kyle and Jeremy. It was nice.

"So you really think Mark is going to be able to do anything about David?" he asked, trying not to sound too hopeful.

"Mark has the bit in his teeth now. He's like an attack dog; once he bites down, he isn't letting go." Taylor smiled over the rim of his cup of tea. "In a way, you gave him a present. He never said anything to David about him hitting on me, and Mark has just been _waiting_ for a reason to have a go at him."

"… Do you think he'll be able to do anything about Manny, too?"

"Well, that one will certainly be harder," Taylor said honestly. "And the sad part is, it shouldn't be. If you're lovers, he should trust you. Maybe part of the reason he refuses to believe it is because hating David for what he did would mean admitting to himself that you played your part, too. If he can convince himself you're making it up, then he doesn't have to believe you cheated on him."

Nelson opened his mouth to say something but paused. He hadn't considered that before. He had thought it was crazy that Manny thought he was lying about cheating on him – what kind of sane person admitted that to their lover without a good reason? – but what Taylor said kind of made sense. "So if he stops being mad at me about David, he might _start_ being mad at me about what happened?"

"I think it's a possibility," Taylor answered, "but won't it feel better? To be arguing over the real issue instead of this silliness? At least if you're arguing over what actually happened, eventually the argument might be resolved."

Nelson smirked sadly. "Oh, so you're one of _those_ people, huh? An optimist. You're like my best friend, always looking on the bright side."

"Why not? There's no point in being depressed."

Nelson had to admit that Taylor had a point.

The handle to the front door turned as Mark walked back in, definitely looking like he had come to blows with David. His hair was a mess, his shirt had a tear in it, and there were a few spots that looked to be the beginning of bruises. But he was grinning.

"So you won then?" Taylor asked, getting another cup of tea.

"Was there ever any doubt? I'm undefeatable, yeah!" He did a cheesy victory pose but his smile was a bit weary.

"Did you hurt him a lot?" Nelson asked hopefully. "Like, maybe so there will be certain parts he can never use again? Pretty please?"

"Well, as a guy I'm kind of weary of de-testicling someone – no matter how much they deserve it – but I made it clear that if David pulls anything like that again he'd better have a Ziploc baggie handy to collect his teeth in. And he'll be waking up underwater if he doesn't tell Manny the truth by the end of the week."

Nelson grinned. "You're making him tell Manny?"

"Mm. It's my own extra little punishment. I doubt Manny will punch him in the already-blackened eye like he deserves, but he at least needs the opportunity."

Taylor laughed. "Aw, my avenging angel." He moved towards Mark and gave him a sweet kiss.

"Don't do that in front of me!" Nelson complained, "I'm feeling totally frustrated and neglected since Manny and I are fighting."

Mark let out a barkish laugh. "Well for the love of God don't do anything stupid to make this situation worse! You just go get a cold shower and jack-off, horny boy."

"Screw you!" Nelson snapped, though a tiny laugh slipped out. He didn't get too mad at Mark for saying it; hell, he was right.

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

Nelson was sitting at the bar in the kitchen chatting with Taylor as he cut up vegetables to go in their dinner that night when the phone let out a high shriek about a foot from his left ear.

He screamed and almost fell off of the bar stool while Taylor laughed loudly. "Can you get that since you're right there?" he asked, "my hands are dirty."

"And you're touching our food?" Nelson grabbed the receiver and tapped the green button. "Bailey-Potter residence, you got Nelson!"

"… Nelson? It's David."

Nelson froze and his smile disappeared like it had melted off of his face. "… What the fuck do you want?"

Taylor raised an eyebrow but Nelson waved him off and took the phone into the living room. "You must have titanium testicles to be calling me," he growled furiously. ((Yeah, furious like a kitten.))

"I know. I just, I have something to say alright?"

"What is it?" Nelson demanded, bracing himself for some undeserved bit of cruelty from this inhuman monster.

So he deflated like a balloon when David whispered, "I'm sorry."

"You're… you're sorry? You're fucking sorry?! Bullshit!" Nelson accused. "If anything, you're just afraid that Mark will impale you on a fire-poker! What, did he threaten you into this when he beat the shit out of you earlier?"

"For your information, he didn't say anything about it! I just… I just got off the phone with Manny. I told him everything – that part _was_ one of Mark's threats."

Nelson wanted to ask David how Manny was, did he sound okay, how had he responded? But he didn't want to let the asshole get that deep in. "And?"

"He exploded, if that makes you happy. He ranted and raved and screamed and cussed me from here to Thailand and back. I'm not allowed to come near him, or within a hundred feet of you, or blah blah blah. I kind of tuned the last bit out because my eardrums were busted."

Despite himself, Nelson laughed. He had only heard Manny get loud once – he and Jason were on the phone watching a basketball game together and _something_ had set his lover off. Kyle had told Nelson that on his end he'd been tempted to wash Jason's mouth out with soap for that little incident.

"Anyway, so I'm sitting there listening to him scream at me and realizing how bad I fucked things up between you two. And no matter what you think about me, that wasn't my intent. I'm just a selfish asshole and a reckless horndog with a superiority complex, not a relationship-killer. What happened between me and Cameron… well, he wanted it, too. Begged for it. But at least he was single at the time."

"… I made a mistake that night, I admit that, but you **tortured** me for weeks," Nelson reminded, not about to forgive so easily.

"I know. And I doubt it means much, but I am sorry."

"You're right; it doesn't."

"Isn't that the way things go, sometimes. The sad thing is, we could have been friends you and I." David sighed. "Whatever, I'm gonna go now. Since Manny knows the truth, hopefully you guys can talk soon. Good luck." He hung up without waiting for Nelson's response.

Nelson tapped the red button and sighed. Would anything in this fucking life ever make sense? Goddamn that David.


	21. Jason VII

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ I know, I know. _Sighs_. But I found away to make myself get around to finishing this story! I'm working on a new gender-bender Yu-Gi-Oh! fic (it's very funny; go read it!) and I have a friend who's bothering me to update it. But I've decided I'm going to put up a chap on this fic every time I put up a chap on the other one. In short, I'll be updating this story quicker because my friend will be pestering me to work on the other one. That's good news for all of you.

Admittedly, these last few chapters are going to get shorter…. At this point, it can't be helped. At least I'm finishing it, neh? This chapter is especially short because it's mostly just a filler to keep the pattern going. It's Jason's next chapter where things come to a head.

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CHAPTER NINETEEN - Jason

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Jason smiled nervously at his Uncle Dan as he sat on a two person couch with Miss Kelley as he waited for Aunt Claire to bring his sister out so they could talk. The social worker had finally set up a time where he could talk to Missy about the changes their relationship might be going through very soon if he managed to win the custody case against their father. He was extremely nervous, knowing this would be one of the most awkward conversations in his entire life.

Melissa ran out of the bedroom she was using at their aunt's place and tackled Jason, burying her face in his chest and squeezing her skinny arms tight around his neck. "I missed you!" she cried, "I've missed you so much! Don't leave me again, Jason!" she begged.

"Shh." He in turn buried his face in her soft thick hair, breathing in the comfortingly familiar scent. "It's okay, Missy. I missed you, too." He knew he couldn't promise not to leave her since things were so up in the air.

Miss Kelley smiled as she watched them then stood up and opened her folder in a businesslike manner. "Alright, Jason, you understand what you need to do while we're here, yes?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Good. Your aunt, uncle, and I will be in the kitchen while you and Melissa talk. You have to stay here in the living room and we'll only be here for half an hour."

Jason tried not to scowl at the woman who had helped him so much with all the trouble going against his father had brought but was also setting up so many stupid rules about how he could be with his own little sister.

When they were gone, he let out a breath and squeezed Missy tighter to his chest. "I missed you so much," he told her. "Are you alright? How was your stay with dad? Did he feed you? Did he yell at you or hurt you?"

She shook her head. "He didn't do anything. There wasn't much good food to eat, though. I really don't like fish sticks or peanut butter and that was pretty much all he had. I'm glad I'm here. I mean… it's really weird but Aunt Claire is really nice."

Jason nodded. "She's a good aunt."

"How's Kyle and his parents?"

"Good, good. Kyle's been working a lot lately, but I think he likes keeping busy." He didn't bother telling her about the stress and the fighting since it was none of her business and he didn't want to worry her. He stroked her hair for a few more seconds then gently pushed her to sit up so that they were looking at each other. "Do you know why they're letting me see you today, Missy?"

"Uh-uh. Aunt Claire didn't tell me and I didn't want to ask in case they changed their minds."

Jason sighed and tucked some of her wavy hair behind her cute ear. "Missy, you know that soon we're going to have to go to court so a judge can decide if you're going to come live with me or Dad, right? Well, if I manage to win – and I promise I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure I do! – then I'm going to do my best to adopt you as soon after that as I can."

"Why?" Missy asked, "Won't I be living with you if you win?"

"You will but if I adopt you then it will be permanent. Adoption is a very big deal, Missy. It would mean that you would become my daughter instead of just my little sister."

"But… how can you be my dad and my brother?" she asked, confused.

Jason had to bite the inside of his cheek to avoid thinking something inappropriate about parent-child incest that would have gotten a laugh from anyone he knew _except_ his poor confused little sister and his prudish boyfriend. "It will mean that all of the papers you bring home from school will be signed by me and that I'll be going to your parent-teacher conferences." He chuckled quietly. "Presents on father's day and all that jazz. I'll be doing the same things Ma used to do for you."

"Really? So if you're gonna be my dad is Kyle going to be my new mommy?"

He brought a hand up to cover his laugh. "Maybe a few years down the road he will be. I know he wants to be."

"I would like that," she admitted, grinning at him.

That was one less stress, anyway. "I've talked to Kyle's parents a lot while I've been staying with them. If you get to come with me, then we're going to move in with Miss Anna and Mr. Michael."

"Like how we were a few weeks ago?"

"A lot like that. But when fall comes and it's time to go back to school, Kyle's going to be moving back up to his college and it will be like last year when we don't get to see him much. You might end up having to sleep on the couch for a while until we can get things all figured out and there won't be a lot of money to spend on things like clothes and toys for a while."

"That's okay, at least I'll be with you. Do you think – if Kyle's gonna be gone – he'll let me play with that frog game while he's away?" she asked hopefully, "I think I can beat it."

"Frog game?" Jason raised an eyebrow then shook his head, deciding it wasn't important. "I'm sure he will. And if Kyle is anything like his mother, then she's saved a lot of his old toys and you can play with them."

She nodded and grinned brightly at him. "It sounds fun!"

He chuckled quietly, wondering if he had managed to explain that in any good way at all. Did Missy really understand? Then again….

"Missy, you know that things are going to have to change if I adopt you, don't you?"

"Why?" she asked.

"I told you-."

"Jay," she interrupted, "Ma had pictures of you helping her feed me and give me baths when I was a newborn and you were only twelve-years-old. You were the one who read to me and played games with me. When Mama was working late, Dad never bothered to make us dinner; you did. And when I started kindergarten, you helped me pack my bag and were even late to class since you walked me! You've been my 'dad' for as long as I can remember!"

Jason laughed. "I guess you're right," he agreed. "Well, if that's the case then I can say I helped raise one amazing girl."

"Of course you did. I'm perfect!"


	22. Kyle VII

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ This is Kyle's last chapter! Yep, we're in the home stretch! Kyle, Nelson, Jason, Nelson's epilogue and it's all over! Hope it's been worth it! I'm going to keep this part short and sweet for once! Bye!

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CHAPTER TWENTY - Kyle

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Kyle woke up warm and cozy tightly-wrapped in the arms of the boy he loved on his own circadian rhythm on the first morning he and Jason had both had off in weeks. He smiled and stretched carefully, trying not to squirm around too much and wake his boyfriend up since Jason hadn't fallen asleep very quickly the night before after his visit with Missy. But at least he hadn't been sad, just pensive. And in the mood to make love.

He grinned and carefully coaxed Jason's bare arm from around his waist, stopping when his boyfriend seemed like he was starting to stir. He finally managed to get Jason off of him and leaned over to kiss the top of his boyfriend's curly brown hair. He walked around the room pulling on his underwear and getting a change of clothes out of the closet, pulling on a pair of jeans he'd never managed to get back to Nelson and a Tigers T-shirt.

Before leaving, he tucked the blankets back up around Jason's broad shoulders. He slipped out of the room silently and closed the door then headed downstairs.

The light was already on so he knew his parents were awake. Sure enough his dad was sitting at the table with a cup of steaming coffee and the paper while his mother flipped pancakes on the grid iron. "Good morning, honey," his mom greeted as he grabbed a ceramic mug from the cabinet and moved towards the coffee pot. "Is Jason up yet?"

"Dead to the world and snoring a little," he admitted, grinning. "He sleeps like a little kid." He added some milk to his mug then sat down next to his dad to wait for breakfast. Things had been a little less tense around the house since he'd stood up to both of his parents and managed to at least get them to understand where he was coming from. "Can I see the section you're done with, Dad?"

His father handed him the section with the local news and Kyle flipped through it, deciding there was nothing too interesting. "Can I get the business section when you're done with it?"

"Mmhmm," his dad answered absently, so absorbed in it himself that he probably hadn't even heard Kyle's request.

Kyle laughed and took a deep gulp of his coffee. After a year at Princeton, he was just as addicted to his morning wake-up call as the seniors. The closest Starbucks to the campus did a fantastic business, that was for sure.

"It's actually rather good that you're up before Jason," his mother said, "Your father and I need to talk to you about something serious." She reached out and lowered his dad's paper to get his attention.

Kyle bit back a groan and went to refill his mug, worried that this was going to be like their other conversations and thus end with a shouting match. He sat back down and got comfortable before saying, "Alright, go ahead."

"We've thought a lot about what you said, Kyle," his dad started, "and even though we don't really agree with or understand everything you said, there is one thing you said that we can't argue with."

"We have to accept that you're an adult now," his mother added. "You're nineteen now and we can't make your decisions for you."

"You really mean that?" Kyle asked, starting to get a bit excited. That was one of the biggest things he argued with his parents about – the way they made him feel like a little kid.

"Yes, son," his dad answered. "You know we want you to stay at Princeton but we can't force you to. So we've come up with a proposition for you. Go back to Princeton this year. Your mother and I have already agreed to take Jason in for a year so you'll know he's being looked after and we'll help him take care of Missy if he managed to win the custody case against his father."

"In exchange," his mother slipped in, "After your last final next May your father and I will give you the same amount of money your first two years at Princeton have cost us. You can use it however you feel you need to. You can finish your last two years at Princeton with it, or go to another college and have some money left over to get an apartment near campus, or… even not go to school two more years and keep all of the money."

Kyle accidentally spilled some of the hot coffee on his thigh in his shock at what his mother had said. "Ow, ow, ow!" She handed him a towel and he pushed his mug onto the table quickly mopping up the burning liquid. "Do… do you two really mean that?" he asked hopefully.

His father glared into his own coffee but nodded his head once sharply. "You were right, Kyle. It's time for us to let you grow up and make your own decisions."

Kyle brought his hands up to cover one of the biggest smiles he'd shown in years. "Well, I'll go right ahead and reassure both of you that there's no way on God's Earth that I'm going to stop going to college after just two years. I know how important a four-year degree is."

"It's good to hear that, Kyle," his dad said.

Without any warning, Kyle jumped up and ran over to his mom, wrapping his arms around her and hugging her tight, then he moved and hugged his dad from behind. "You don't have any idea how much this means to me, you guys!" he announced, "I'm going to go wake Jason up; this is way more important than sleep!"

He put his mug in the sink and splashed some water in it then ran upstairs, throwing open the door to his bedroom and making Jason let out a scared scream. Kyle giggled – apparently Jason had woken up while he was talking to his parents and started to get dressed. He grabbed the shirt in Jason's hands and threw it over the back of his desk chair, pouncing on his boyfriend and pinning him back to the bed.

"What's gotten into you?" Jason demanded before Kyle shut him up by giving him a deep kiss. When he pulled back, Jason started to laugh. "So this is what caffeine does to you, huh? I kind of like it! Note to self; Kyle gets a cappuccino machine for Christmas!"

Kyle smacked Jason on the bare chest, blushing bright red. "Shut up and listen!" He jabbered happily as he explained what had just happened downstairs with his parents before summarizing, "So that means that in two years I can go with you wherever you end up finishing school!"

"That's great, Kyle!" Jason agreed, "But I just have to ask, couldn't you have told me this with me still vertical?"

"Well what's the fun in that?" Kyle demanded, "Besides, aren't you in the mood to celebrate?"

"How long do we have until breakfast is ready?" Jason asked, raising one of his thick eyebrows.

"… Damn. Fine, but once the dishes are done, you're mine, Mister!" Kyle announced, wrapping his arms tight around his boyfriend, nuzzling Jason's strong bare chest. He couldn't believe it! All of a sudden, his world was perfect! His parents were starting to respect him as an adult, he was going to be able to be with his boyfriend, and he was going to be having sex in less than an hour.

Life was good.


	23. Nelson VII

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ It's amazing how quick I'm getting these chapters out now. I know the quality isn't anywhere **near** what it used to be since the chapters have more than halved in length and I'm kind of rushing, but I've got another fanfic I'm working on, I'm trying to get my first full-length original novel finished by New Years (so close!) and I only have three chaps left to go in this fic, so yeah. At least I'm finishing, though! … I keep pointing that out like it helps anything.

BTW, since no one even tried to guess, Mark and Taylor are the main characters from Mark Roeder's books Ancient Prejudice and The Soccer Field is Empty along with major characters in the second half of the Gay Youth Chronicles. Seriously, read Mark Roeder, he's amazing.

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CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE - Nelson

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Nelson reached around Taylor and stole one of the peanut-butter chocolate balls the long-haired blond was lining up on a sheet of wax paper laid out on a cookie sheet to make some treats. Personally, Nelson thought they were a ton better raw; what was greater than peanut-butter?!

He had been staying with Mark and Taylor for a while and was starting to get more comfortable with them, to even think of them as new friends of his own instead of just friends of Manny's that he had been shoved on. Hanging out with Kyle while he and Jason were a couple had helped Nelson learn when to make himself scarce and neither Mark nor Taylor ever tried to exclude him or make him feel like a burden.

But just because he had his especially good blooming friendship with Taylor to take his mind off of his relationship problems didn't change the fact that even after David had called and told him he'd told Manny the truth Nelson still hadn't heard from his boyfriend. He wondered if part of Manny's revenge was to leave him there squirming, and he was getting sick of it if so!

"Hey!" Taylor snapped, laughing, and smacked him on the back of the hand with a wooden spoon, "Stop that! I still have to sprinkle them with cornflakes and cook them!"

"But I'm hungry!" Nelson whined, "At least move out of the way and let me make something to snack on!"

"Dinner will be in forty-five minutes you mooch! I think you'll live!"

"After saying that wouldn't you feel so horrible if I starved to death on your kitchen floor?"

"Not really," Mark answered from the doorway, "By the way, I doubt you heard it during your mad attempt to steal our dessert, but your cell-phone was going off in your bedroom. Go answer it while I molest my boyfriend over the stove."

"Is that why Taylor's so hot?" Nelson asked, winking, as he slipped past Mark who just barely missed giving his ass a firm slap as punishment for that one. He darted back to his bedroom and closed the door then bounced on the bed as he grabbed his phone off the nightstand.

'Please be Manny, please be Manny, please be Manny,' he prayed, squeezing the phone in both hands before he tapped the button to check his missed calls.

Unfortunately, it was just his mom.

He sighed and tapped the redial button, trying not to let his raging disappointment show through as the other end of the line rang.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Mom," Nelson said, "Sorry I missed your call; I was in the kitchen with Taylor." His mother knew all about what had happened between him and Manny even though he hadn't been thrilled to have one _more_ person yelling at him about what had happened with David. Still, he liked having his mommy when he was depressed since he was trying not to binge out on Mark and Taylor's food.

"Is Manny still being stubborn?" she asked concerned. "I would have thought he'd call you by now."

"You and me both," he bitched. "I'm starting to wonder if he even wants to get back together…."

"I'm sure he does, Nelson. I admit I've only spent a short time with him, but it's obvious that he cares about you."

Normally that would have helped, but Nelson just wanted to be angsty for a while. "Now I know how Jeremy must have felt when I'd leave him hanging for days on end. Is this my punishment from the universe or something?"

"Don't be so dramatic, honey. I called to tell you that I got a message from your father earlier-."

"You didn't tell the old bastard I've been having problems with Manny, have you?" Nelson interrupted, "I don't want to get a message from him about how 'your mother told me to call and talk to you' and how he's so busy and I wouldn't have these problems with a girl and blah blah blah."

"That's not it at all; actually, he's done something nice. I guess his credit card goes by some odd year system but he has a lot of flyer miles left over so he wants me to ask if you'd like to use them to come home for a while. You could see Kyle and just get away from California for a while."

Nelson thought about it for a minute. Did he want to do that? It would be great to see Kyle and Jason again and would help take his mind off of the whole situation with Manny. In fact, the more he thought about it the better a vacation sounded.

"That would be great, Mom! Oh, but that means I'll have to call Dad and work out the details with him," Nelson whined.

"It will be worth it, you big baby."

"I guess so! Would next week be okay, even?" he asked, getting excited.

"Any time you want to come is fine with me, honey."

"Sweet!"

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Nelson was actually whistling happily as he got home from work the next day. He'd talked to his boss and – after some major ear-bleeding bitching – had gotten the clear to take the next week off so he could go back to D.C. He'd managed to survive the phone-call with his dad without biting his tongue out, and both Kyle and Jason had sounded excited to have him come visit. It was going to be great!

He used the spare key to let himself into Mark and Taylor's place and cheered, "Honey, I'm home!" as he bounded inside. He tossed his keys onto the table in the hallway and dance-walked into the living room.

But when he saw Manny sitting on the couch with Mark, he miss-stepped and almost took a nose-dive into the table.

"… Hi Nelson," Manny greeted, putting down his Coke and standing up to meet him.

Nelson couldn't believe it. He'd been expecting Manny to _call_, not show up without any warning! But shouldn't he be happy that Manny was there? Maybe he would have been if this had been days before and he hadn't been stewing in feelings of rejection for longer than he ever wanted to again.

"Hey. What's up?" he asked as casually as he could manage.

"Imma… make myself scarce, kay?" Mark said, standing and edging towards the back hallway. "No bloodshed or whatever on the upholstery…. Especially no 'whatever'; it takes forever to get that out." He ducked into the hall and they heard his bedroom door shut.

Nelson stared at him for a few more seconds. "What are you doing here, Manny?"

"We need to talk, Nelson. A lot. I don't know if you know, but-."

"David told you I was telling the truth? Yeah, he called me. Which is more than I can say for someone in this room. It's kind of sad that the life-ruining asshole called me a few days before my so-called boyfriend."

"Well you have to admit, Nelson," Manny said, starting to get defensive, "It was a lot to think about! I mean, you _cheated_ on me with one of my… well, who I thought was a best friend! Am I just supposed to be okay with that?"

"Of course you aren't!" Nelson yelled, "That's why I told you in the first place! So you could cry or yell or kick my ass out… whatever you needed to do! But to have to _prove_ that I did something wrong just so you will believe that I did it? That's bullshit, Manny!"

"I know that! I know I should have believed you, but dammit, Nelson! What was I supposed to think?!"

"That I'm your boyfriend and if I tell you something – especially something that puts _my_ ass on the line – you should probably believe me! I've said it before and I'll say it again; why would I have told you I cheated on you if I hadn't?! That's like the stupidest possible thing in the world!"

Manny took a deep breath and Nelson took one too, knowing they had to stop before they yelled at each other more and ruined any chance of making peace for a long, long time.

"I should be so mad at you," Manny said, "But I guess you should be just as mad at me."

"Should be? I _am_ mad, Manny. Really mad."

Manny nodded. "So… what are we going to do?"

"I don't know," Nelson confessed. "I don't know if… if we can work things out. Do you? I mean, the fact is that you obviously can't trust me – even less since you know I really did it – and I'm not sure I can be with someone that doesn't trust me even if I don't always deserve it."

"I still love you, Nelson."

"I still love you, too, Manny! But that doesn't mean that we can be together in a functional, happy relationship. Hell, I still love Kyle and wouldn't **that** be a disaster?"

"So what are you saying, Nelson?" Manny demanded.

Nelson sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Look…. Next week I'm going back to D.C. for a while. See my mom, catch up with my two favorite east-coast queers. I've got a lot of thinking to do. So… can I make my decision after I get back?"

"You're going to make me wait at least a week?" Manny asked.

"At this point, Manny, I think turnabout is fair play."


	24. Jason VIII

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ Celebrate, people! This is the last chapter not including Nelson's epilogue! Alright, maybe you're not celebrating if you want this story to continue, but I've been having so much fucking computer trouble. I had just gotten used to that Vista bullshit when my OS died and I had a comp sci major friend of a friend to put Urbuntu on it, then I made the most bitching computer background using strips from "Friendly HOSTILITY" and "Boy Meets Boy" because something about Fox and Collin turns me on so bad.

I've also decided that I'm going to wait until my short story is released in the Halloween Sip Bits before posting Nelson's epilogue. Sorry, sorry, but I want to be able to put the link in it in case anyone wants to get a copy. I know, shameless plugging for my own writing. Deal with it.

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CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO – Jason

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It was finally time. The trial – Carrillo vs Carrillo with the single charge of child abuse. Jason sat in the seat next to his lawyer and Miss Kelley with Kyle, his parents, Corey's mom, and Coach Cameron behind him. His dad sat in the defendant's chair with Jason's Uncle Ramiro and Aunt Ana behind him (even though Ana had given Jason a tiny smile before following her husband).

Miss Kelley had stated quite plainly that Melissa was not allowed to be there for the ruling. His Aunt Clair had brought Melissa earlier to talk about the night she'd seen their dad take a few swings at Jason after he came out then took the little girl out for ice cream since she'd started crying.

It had been so damn hard to sit there in front of Kyle, Michael, and Anna, and hear about what he'd gone through in his childhood. For years and years, he hadn't realized that there was anything wrong with the things his dad did. He had really believed that his dad was just trying to toughen him up and teach him how to be a man. When he did realize it, however... he had been so embarrassed that he'd let it happen at all.

He had kept his hands clasped in front of him throughout almost the entire trial, and he'd noticed them shake a few times. He couldn't believe his Uncle Ramiro – who couldn't spend a full evening with his dad without them coming to cussing and fist fights – stood up there and lied about how much "My brother loves his son" and "He's tried so hard to be a good father, but Jason can be difficult at times".

At least the effusive amounts of praise from his alcoholic brother hadn't helped his dad explain away the school nurse's reports, his little sister's witness testimony, or fact that Jason had spent a good chunk of his childhood hiding from his dad at Corey's house.

His father's defense attorney was an asshole. The guy had seemed to get some kind of sadistic pleasure from torturing Jason on the stand, making him re-tell the same stories over and over. The worst had been when the man was trying to discredit Missy's statement.

"Don't you think, Jason, that any parent might be shocked – even horrified – at the idea of their child being gay? Don't you think your father's response might have simply been a response to what you had just told him?"

Jason had stared at the man coldly, trying not to lose his always-volatile temper. "Three of my friends are gay, Sir, and none of them spent the night after telling their parents nursing bruises. So no, I can't imagine that my coming out is any sort of justification."

The whole time, his dad's lawyer had been trying to say that the reason Jason had been abused was all his own fault. As if though anything a kid could do justified some of the things his father had done to him.

The hardest thing to talk about was the first time his father had moved from smacking him around to really pounding on him. Even though he knew Kyle knew about Tommy, no one else in the room besides he and his dad did. He'd nibbled nervously at his fingernails as he talked about what had happened that night, not only the physical beating he'd gotten but some of the mental issues it had given him in his senior year.

Unfortunately, that just helped support the defense case that Jason's father was just a 'concerned parent' trying to keep his son from being gay.

When it came time for the judge, a short fat man that was balding on top and sweating through the whole case, to give his ruling, Jason stood up and tried not to let his nervousness show again.

He could all but feel Kyle pouring calm onto him so that he didn't fidget as the judge flipped through his notes and eyed both Jason and his father. "After deliberation, I find the defendant, Elio Carrillo, not guilty of the sole charge of child abuse."

Jason paled and almost swayed where he stood. How?! How could anyone find his father innocent?! Was the judge some kind of homophobe or something? Would he have found his father guilty if he'd had a few dozen hospital reports? Or if someone besides his little sister had seen him get hit? Or if he wasn't a nineteen year old involved in a custody case with the fucking defendant?

"That said," the judge went on, speaking to his father, "I want to make it perfectly clear, Mr. Carrillo, that I am aware of the fact that you are trying to get custody of your daughter. Make sure you understand that if you do get custody of her, you will be being watched like a slide under a microscope. Do you get me?"

"Yes, Your Honor," his father said, sounding contrite but Jason knew better than to buy that.

The judge nodded and banged the gavel to dismiss them, then he gathered up his things and left without even looking at Jason once.

Jason turned around and his eyes met Kyle's own sad doe-brown ones. "I'm sorry," Kyle whispered, apparently not sure what to say.

"Are you going to challenge it?" Coach Cameron asked quietly so Jason's dad wouldn't overhear.

"Even if I did, the issue with Missy would be decided before it got filed. There's no point if it can't help her."

"I'm really sorry, Jason," his lawyer – one of his co-workers (if someone making about twenty-billion times what he did could be considered a 'co-worker') said.

"Not your fault." He sighed. "I want to go home."

He walked towards the little swinging gate thing when his dad's hand reached out and grabbed his upper-arm, tight. "How did you like that, huh, you little bastard?" he asked meanly.

Everyone who was there for Jason made a move forward, even Miss Kelley whose presence there his dad must have completely forgotten if he was willing to take the hell out of him in front of her, but Jason held his ground.

"Didn't like it much at all," he stated, "But at least it helped me know what kind of things I'll have to do when we're in the court for Missy, won't it?'

"You've got shit for brains, boy! You heard him; I'm not guilty of a thing. You really think you can win?"

"I have to try, don't I?" Jason asked. "So it's okay to beat up on queer kids, huh? God forbid Missy grow up to be a lesbian."

"Your sister isn't a little freak like you were," his dad said, hatefully. "So you're really going to put her through that, huh? Some fantastic big brother."

"I could ask you the same question. Missy wants to be with me, and there are four of us who really want to have Missy with us to take care of her as opposed to one alcoholic asshole who doesn't even want her. If just going through with the case will hurt her, then I don't even want to imagine how she'll feel if she does get taken from me. Not, I'm sure, that you care."

Miss Kelley stepped forward and glared at his father. "I generally make it a point not to get involved with a case any more personally than is needed to do it justice, but this is despicable. Mr. Carrillo, I promise you that I and the Social Services of Alexandria, Virginia are not going to make this easy on you. I have seen many different situations in my work, but the fact that you – who seems to show no remorse for your actions – could get custody of another child disgusts me."

To Jason's surprise, his father actually looked a little startled that the social worker had gotten involved. "You'd really take my daughter from me and give her to this little fairy?"

"Sexuality has nothing to do with determining parenting ability. Obviously," she added angrily.

His father glared at him, furious. "I ain't going through with this bullshit if I'm gonna lose," he announced, "Besides, I had to take care of her when she was at my place; you and that mother of your spoiled her! She's almost as much of a brat as you were! If you want her, fine! I'll sign whatever damn papers I need to but only if you agree that I never have to give you a dime!"

Jason couldn't believe what his father had just said. He was basically willing to give up his own child to save some money. Then again, he knew his dad didn't love them, and the fact that he was willing to give Missy up at all was fantastic.

"I'll let you know what I decide," Jason said, coolly, wrenching himself free and going to join Kyle. He wanted to jump on the chance, but would he really be able to take care of Missy without his father helping him with the money?


	25. Epilogue: Nelson

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ Well, I'm sorry to say it, but this is the end of "Memory, Family, and Demon". It's had a good run, being the only story of this length that I have completed so far, and I'm actually rather pleased with myself. Just because MFD is over doesn't mean that I won't come back to this fandom sometime, perhaps even sometime soon. But for now I'm devoting a lot of my time and energy into "Feminine Effects", my Yu-Gi-Oh gender-bender fanfic.

Thanks to everyone who stuck with me, including **lightblue-Nymphadora and MonkeyMojo. **It means a lot.

**IMPORTANT!** My first paid publication was just released by Torquere Press. It's a short story about a knight who captures and sleeps with a demon. The links to both the short story and the anthology it appears in are on my profile (hopefully, if ff.n accepted the update), so if you want to, check it out!

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EPILOGUE – Nelson

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Nelson grinned nervously as he reached out and jabbed his finger against the doorbell of the Meeks' house, hoping that Kyle and Jason were as thrilled to see him as they had sounded over the phone. He had just gotten to D.C. two hours ago and had been catching up with his mom before going to see his favorite couple.

He could hear someone thundering down the stairs from inside and the door had barely been thrown open before his arms were full of Kyle.

"God, I've missed you so much!" Kyle wailed, hugging Nelson tight enough to make his ribs creak.

Nelson squeezed Kyle in return and nuzzled him until he could whisper in Kyle's ear. "I've missed you, too. I'm so glad to be home."

"You're not allowed to leave again," Kyle said, "I'm not letting you."

"Aww, come on, in a few days you'll be jumping up and down at the chance to get rid of me." They pulled back and grinned at each other affectionately.

"Hey, don't stand there doing that on the front porch; what will the neighbors think?"

Nelson smirked and stepped around Kyle to give Jason a huge hug as well. "They'll think 'that poor Meeks boy finally wizened up and got himself a decent man'."

Jason chuckled and clapped him on the back before stepping away.

"Come on in," Kyle insisted, waving Nelson through the front door, "Do you need something to drink? Did your mom feed you yet? How was your flight?"

"Cluck, cluck, cluck," Nelson mocked, ruffling Kyle's hair. "I'm fine, mother hen. The flight was okay except I ended up next to some fat guy who snored the whole way! That's when headphones com in handy, though."

"Is that you, Nelson?" Mrs. Meeks asked, stepping out of the kitchen, drying her hands on a rag. "My goodness, it has been a long time."

"Definitely," Nelson agreed, "I sure have missed being back east. LA is chaotic at it's slowest!"

"I can imagine," she said.

"Come on upstairs, Nelson," Kyle said, gripping onto his sleeve happily. Nelson grinned; it sure felt nice to be wanted so much.

As they climbed the stairs, a blur ran up to them and jumped on Jason, who had to brace against the railing. Melissa grinned at him, then turned to Nelson. "I remember you!" she said, "You came over a few times and played dollies with me once!"

"Do you remember his name?" Jason teased her.

She stuck her tongue out at him and said, "I was listening outside the door while you and Kyle were on the phone, so I know his name is Nelson."

"You know better than to eavesdrop, Missy," Kyle chided.

"Aww, but Kyle!"

"'Aww, but' nothing, young lady," Jason said, setting her down. "Now run along and play, alright?"

"Okay."

Nelson grinned after her as she ran off. "She's cute."

"She's a pain in the butt is what she is," Jason replied, but the fond look on his face betrayed that right away.

Kyle laughed and let everyone into his room. Nelson flopped down on the bed, bouncing on it a few times, re-familiarizing himself with Kyle's room. He heard one spot creak and bounced on it a few more times, then grinned suggestively at Jason who reached out and whacked him upside the head.

"So what the **hell** has been going on here?" Nelson said, "Kyle's been telling me the amazingly-vague paraphrase version, but I want the whole story. Are you really here for good now?" he asked Jason.

Jason nodded. "Yep, and Missy and I are finished with my dad for good." He explained what had happened during and after the trial and Nelson whispered appreciatively.

"Goddamn," Nelson summarized. "So Kyle what do your parents think about all of this?"

Kyle laid down next to him and said, "They're fine about having two new tenants if that's what you mean. I think Mom is thrilled to have a little kid around again; let's just put it this way, I doubt she ever intended for me to be an only child."

Nelson cracked up laughing. "I can see that. How about the whole Princeton thing? Any updates in that direction?"

"Mmm. As of now – of course, this can change in the next year – the plan is for me to finish next year at Princeton, then transfer to Tech. That way, we can use the extra money to get a place off-campus for Jason, Missy, and me."

Jason sighed and added, "While Kyle's finishing up at Tech, I'll take a few years off and work since we'll still have day-to-day expenses."

"Wow," Nelson breathed, not expecting that. "Are you going to go back to school?"

"Probably when Kyle graduates."

Kyle laughed and added, "When he finally finishes and both of us are bringing home money, we'll feel like billionaires compared to when we were in school!"

All three laughed louder. Nelson grabbed one of Kyle's pillows and snuggled it, noting that it smelled like Jason instead of the math-geek. "Sounds like I'm missing all of the drama."

"Not all of it," Kyle said, "... sounds like you and Manny are having plenty out west."

He sighed and nodded. "That's putting it nicely. I had to get out of there or I was going to strangle him with my bare hands. It's not even so much that he's mad – that's a good thing; it means he really cares about me – it's just that he doesn't trust me!"

"Not to play the villain here," Jason said, "But after what happened, can you really blame him?"

Nelson shot Jason a venomous glare then pouted. "Well, no, but he didn't believe me _before_ he accepted that I had... done that. It really burns my butt, you know?"

Kyle patted his arm soothingly. "I know. But I still say that Manny purposely made himself not believe you so he wouldn't be hurt. If he could pass it off as a joke or a lie, then he wouldn't have to deal with it."

The blond shrugged sadly. "I get that, I really do. But... I'm not even sure if Manny and I should try working things out."

"You definitely should!" Kyle insisted immediately. "What if any of those times I was soooooo ticked at Jason, I had decided it wasn't worth it? You wouldn't have even met Manny, and the three of us sure wouldn't be lazing around my room talking about this."

Jason blinked with a look of 'what did I ever do?!' on his face that just made Nelson crack up.

"Well that's different! You two must have frickin' guardian angels or something to make _that_ little miracle work out without bloodshed."

Kyle laughed into his hands, nodding his agreement. "Okay, maybe. But it wasn't all 'angels' or whatever. Some of it was us arguing like pissy tom-cats and lots and lots of compromising. Not every second of a relationship is happy unicorns and jelly-beans, Nelson."

"There were a couple of times I wouldn't have blamed Kyle if he'd told me to fuck off and never come back," Jason added. "Sometimes, you've just got to roll with things as they come."

Nelson glowered at them and said, "I never expected the couple I spoon-fed into life to be giving _me_ relationship advice."

"Well you need it," Kyle said, poking him in the stomach. Don't you **want** to get back together with Manny? I mean, until all of this you two were really happy, right?"

Nelson nodded, remembering some of the good times he and Manny had had going to shows, walking hand-in-hand as they explored Los Angeles, and of course swinging by the Harry Hay school and helping out sometimes. "Yeah we were."

"This is a just a little road bump," Kyle assured. "Okay, a damn big little road bump, but still a road bump; get over it."

"If Manny knifes you in the stomach in the middle of the night, sells your left eye on eBay, and gets a dog pregnant, you can break up over that. Otherwise, learn to work stuff out."

"... Wow, Jason," Nelson drawled, "That's... fucking odd. Are those the kinds of things you think about doing in your spare time?"

Jason reached out and grabbed his pillow from Nelson before beating him with it. Nelson grinned and grabbed the one out from under Kyle's head, attacking him back while Kyle stepped between them trying to keep the peace only to be whacked from both sides.

"Whoops."

"Uh-oh."

"You. Guys. Are both. Dead!" Kyle said, grabbing the last pillow and smacking both of them.

Nelson laughed loudly as he fended off his friend. This was what he had missed the most about being in LA, getting to just go crazy with his best friend. He would miss this when he left.

Finally Jason got Kyle pinned under him, grinning down at him victoriously. Nelson decided to tease them a bit and said, "If you guys start doing stuff in front of me, I'm totally leaving."

"Please," Jason scoffed, "You could learn a thing or two from my technique."

"JASON!" Kyle blushed as red as a stop-light and shoved his boyfriend off of him... and off the side of the bed.

Nelson rolled with laughter as Jason popped up, looking like a disheveled meerkat.

"We'd better calm down before Missy hears us and thinks we're playing something fun without her," Kyle said, sprawling back on the mattress.

To Nelson's amusement, Jason crawled back on with them so it was a tight squeeze for all three of them on a bed.

"So," Jason asked finally, "What _are_ you going to do about the Manny situation?"

Nelson thought about it and finally said, "I definitely don't want to break up. I still love him." He decided not to repeat what he'd said to Manny about how he still loved Kyle but could never date him.

"Enough to make it worth it?" Kyle asked. "You know that if you decide you two _do_ want to make things work that you'll still have to deal with these same issues. The trust, the cheating thing... those aren't going to go away."

"I know, I know!" He groaned and flopped an arm over his eyes. "But... I really want to work things out. I don't want things to end like this between us."

"Then suck it up and call him," Kyle said. "Because I know if Jason and I were fighting and he went to the other half of the country, I'd be sitting here chewing my fingernails to the nub with worry."

Nelson sighed but knew Kyle was right. "I'll call him tonight."

"Good boy." He purred quietly as Kyle petted his hair.

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

_**Ring. Ring. Ring.**_

Nelson curled the cord around his finger as he listened to the other end of the line, wondering if Manny was going to pick up. If he even wanted him to.

"... Hello?"

"Hi, Manny," he whispered nervously.

"Nelson? I guess you made it to DC okay if you're calling from your mom's."

"Yeah, I'm fine. Already swung by and saw Kyle and Jason. I'm going to go see them tomorrow, too, of course, but.... They're both doing good. They both say hi."

"Tell them I send a hug when you see them."

"I will," Nelson agreed. "... I miss you. Which is so dumb because by now I should be used to not having you around."

"Nelson.... Did you get a chance to think about us while you were on the flight?"

"Yeah, and to talk about it with Kyle and Jason. I... I don't want to break up over this, Manny. I know I made a _huge_ mistake, but we both did and said some things we shouldn't have. I mean... you still want us to try and work this out, don't you?" he asked desperately.

"Without a doubt. I love you, Nelson. Nothing you did or I did or even that David did can change that."

Nelson sighed happily. "I know. I love you, too. I promise we'll work this out, Manny," he vowed. Sometimes love was hard, but in the end all that mattered was that Manny was worth it.

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

_**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**_ Normally, I would never end a story when I'm so unhappy with the chapter, but I just can't get the creative juices flowing today. I know, I know, I'm ashamed of myself. But I also don't feel like I can leave you guys hanging. So this concludes "Memory, Family, and Demon". I never expected it to take this long, but over-all I'm content with it. See you in my next fanfic!


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